Tell Chicago That a Tribute to Firefighters is Not a Gang Symbol
A fifteen-year-old who goes to a school for troubled students finally caught a break. Herbert Pulgar's talent won him the first prize in a contest to design the city's required vehicle sticker. Pulgar's design, which pays tribute to Chicago firefighters who saved his life as a young child, features the Chicago skyline encased in a valentine, along with firefighter and police helmets.
Pulgar's design was chosen by 18,000 people who voted in the contest. It was also vetted by ten police officers. But now an anonymous blogger is saying the design features "gang symbols."
The evidence could not be a whole lot thinner. The blogger's argument is that the heart is not only the universal symbol of love, but also a gang sign for the Maniac Latin Disciples, a gang with whom Pulgar has had no proven connections.
Tell the City of Chicago to disregard these silly allegations and to give Pulgar's design the attention it deserves.
We the undersigned ask that you proceed to the printer with Herbert Pulgar's beautiful and heartfelt city vehicle sticker design. Pulgar has stated that the design is a tribute to fire fighters who saved his life when he was four, and that's exactly what the design looks like: with hands throwing up a fire helmet in celebration, the sticker is clearly a tribute to the city's hard-working firemen. Crazy allegations that the artist's use of a heart or his wearing of red declare his allegiance to a gang are nothing but lunatic ravings, and you should dismiss them. This design was chosen by the people of Chicago using a democratic process. You should honor that process and that choice and proceed with issuing the sticker.
