A story about Bay Area graffiti

[Batsy]

This isn’t exactly a travel story, but it’s something that I figured some of y’all would find intriguing.

Many years ago when I was growing up in the Bay Area, I was learning a lot about graffiti as an art form. I found it very fascinating, so I learned everything about it that I could.

One day when I was riding in a car on a highway, I noticed a graffiti piece above the road that simply read “JESSICA”. I wondered if that was the graffiti writer’s actual name, the name of someone they were trying to get the attention of, or maybe the painting was a gift for somebody they knew.

Who is Jessica?

Well,

Several months passed and I spotted the same piece from a BART train I was on, as it rode past the spot it was painted on.

But the next time I rode a train on the same line, as I looked out to see the painting again, it had been blacked out. However, the many graffiti pieces next to it were still riding. I could tell that it wasn’t the city painting over this “Jessica” piece, but it was the work of an individual.

And in black and white lettering, right next to the painted black spot on the wall, the words were written:

“COME HOME JESSICA”


I made a post on the Bay Area Graffiti subreddit explaining what I had seen and asking if anyone knew any backstory as to what was going on (or anything they could share without snitching on anyone).

The only reply I got was from a commenter who mentioned that they had seen a separate tag that read, “where are you, Jessica?”

And beneath it there was a different handwriting:

“I’m right here.”

 

[croc]

Reminds me of Your Mom's Name crew from Fresno like 20+ years ago

 

[Batsy]

Reminds me of Your Mom's Name crew from Fresno like 20+ years ago

Okay, that sounds hilarious. What’s Your Mom’s Name Crew? What was their story?

 

[Opossum]

Here's to Jessica.
I've found plenty of graffiti of folks sayin shit similar to "Come Home, Jessica" n the like.
People saying goodbye, folks lookin for someone, folks lookin for each other, folks expressin their regrets n bemoanin their situations or celebratin their triumphs, or just sayin whatever tf else people feel like sayin. Graffiti's somethin special.
I mostly just tag my name.

 

[ali]

When i was cycling across Canada i noticed a bunch of graffiti painted looking for a woman who had disappeared. I felt like i was following in her footsteps, because i kept seeing these messages for her on the road or on bridges. Eventually i looked her up online and turns out she was another missing or murdered indigenous woman, disappeared years ago, but i guess her family and friends never gave up. Heartbreaking.