A Tagger Dies
A young man came to the rear door the other night. There was blood on his hand, and he held his neck. The rescue ambulance arrived in minutes, followed by paramedics and police. Yellow police tape went up. I was told to wait, this had become a crime scene, perhaps a homicide.
The boy was later to die of his wound.
They said he was a tagger.
I wondered what was told to his friends and family. What cause, what principle did they say this young man died to honor?
What was his contribution? Late teens, perhaps early 20s, such a short life.
I felt helpless. I had no illusion that some act on my part could have saved or prolonged his life. I felt helpless because I think of other young people who die for no good reason.
I do not know how to tell someone that life has value, that death can be meaningful and that dying as a tagger is such a meager accomplishment.
MATTHEW HEALY
Venice
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