Underpass tribute to Daniel Rush to be whitewashed and replaced

10:48am Thursday 30th August 2012 in News Photograph of the Author By Ben Endley, Senior reporter

Tribute to teenager to be replaced Tribute to teenager to be replaced

A memorial to a Meriden teenager who was brutally murdered is to be painted over and replaced with a different tribute, Watford Community Housing Trust has confirmed.

The graffiti-style cross was painted on the wall of the underpass connecting Lea Farm Park with the Meriden estate following the murder of 18-year-old Daniel Rush in 2003.

Mr Rush was attacked with what is believed to have been a hammer in Longspring on February 24, he died in hospital a week later.

Last week contractors arrived to begin white-washing the walls, leaving behind the tribute by an anonymous artist which appeared shortly after Daniel's death and will remain until a suitable replacement can be agreed with Mr Rush’s relatives.

But the sight of contractors working in the tunnel has left feelings running high in the community with several people reportedly questioning workers directly about whether the cross would be painted over.

Former Labour candidate Seamus Williams, 20, said: "I was walking towards ASDA last week when I saw somebody from the housing trust painting near a mural that was done 10 years ago.

"It is important to me because this is somebody from my generation.

"There hasn’t been any consultation process with residents.

But Meriden Residents’ Association Chairman Peter Sweeting disagreed, he said: "People say they are worried about what is going to happen but we held a meeting [about the underpass] in the community centre on Tuesday night and how many of these people came? Not very many.

"Their concerns about the memorial haven’t stopped people using that area as a toilet."

Mr Sweeting said the residents’ association and the housing trust were in contact with Mr Rush’s brother Scott who suggested a apinting of an oak tree as an alternative design.

He said: "He [Mr Rush] suggested putting a little plaque on the wall but I said if you did that today it will be gone by tomorrow morning.

"He agreed that we were going to maintain the memorial and he was the first one to suggest an oak tree, an oak tree is pretty sturdy and hopefully it will last a long time."

Watford Community Housing Trust spokesman Joe Dumont said artwork in the rest of the tunnel has been painted over as part of works to improve the area and will be replaced by designs created by children from three local schools.

Tina Barnard, chief executive of the trust, said: "We are replacing the old artwork in the subway with new designs created by children from Alban Wood, Berrygrove and Cherry Tree Schools, and these will be painted onto the walls by September 10.

"However, in line with the wishes of Daniel Rush’s family and Meriden Residents’ Association, we are carefully preserving the memorial space - we realise it is very important to keep this.

"The Residents’ Association has been working closely with the Rush family on a new design to preserve Daniel’s memory, and we will start painting this after the 10th.

"Meanwhile the existing memorial artwork is being left as it is."

Comments(21)

comments says...
11:13am Thu 30 Aug 12

"There hasn’t been any consultation process with residents"

Erm....did the graffiti artist consult the council when he/she painted it?

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Roy Stockdill says...
12:27pm Thu 30 Aug 12

Terrible as this incident must have been for the lad's family, I'm afraid I find the whole concept and modern trend of turning the scenes of murders, road deaths and other violent incidents into shrines to the victim positively distasteful and unBritish. It seems to be happening every day now - every time there's a murder or someone killed on the road the scene rapidly becomes a shrine with flowers, notes, letters, etc., not to mention Facebook pages. By all means, let the family have a memorial to the boy but more discreet and somewhere more private.

The concept of vicarious public grief - often for someone they never knew - says much about those who go in for this sort of thing. It's as if they are saying to the world "Look at me, aren't I a caring person?" and wallowing in the boost to their self esteem. It can all be dated back to the death of Princess Diana, when the nation in my opinion went stark, staring bonkers over the death of someone the vast majority never knew. I can still recall with a shudder the TV scenes of people weeping and wailing and throwing flowers onto the car carrying her coffin as it went up the motorway.

This never used to be the British way of dealing with death. We as a nation used to deal with death privately and with dignity, not turning it into some sort of public charade of vicarious grief riddled with cloying sentimentality.

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dontknowynot says...
12:29pm Thu 30 Aug 12

The consultation process appears to be one of the new variant kind i.e done after the work was started.
As such the children's artwork was painted over prior to the consultation.
@comments
As I recall the initial tribute to Dan Rush was done at about the same time and was compleated with consent.

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dontknowynot says...
1:04pm Thu 30 Aug 12

@roy
just noticed your post and really think you are just on a wrong tangent.
This tribute is more akin to park bench with a brass plaque on it down the Bowls club or cricket club old boy.

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Roy Stockdill says...
1:18pm Thu 30 Aug 12

Well, would there be anything wrong with that? Does anyone seriously think the graffiti in the underpass is either particularly artistic or pretty or dignified? To me it's just a badly executed daub with no dignity whatsoever.

My point was, if you read my comment fully, that I detest the modern concept of the younger generation that every scene of a violent death should be turned into a shrine to the victim. It is, as I said, unBritish and vicarious, cloying sentimentality, indicating the intellectual immaturity and ignorance of the perpetrators.

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dontknowynot says...
1:36pm Thu 30 Aug 12

@roy I an sorry but I don't have a supply of inappropriate comments to cut and paste at the most inappropriate time; but then again I am not an ex journalist.
you are, I believe, on an utterly wrong tangent. 1) Dan Rush was not murdered in the underpass.2) the tribute was not out of keeping with the artwork by children, as such it was tasteful. 3) the work to repaint the subway was started prior to consultation.
My understanding is hat had the contractors not had the common sense and decency to leave the tribute in tact, it would have been painted over.

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Roy Stockdill says...
2:11pm Thu 30 Aug 12

I didn't suggest he was killed in the underpass, but the graffiti by an anonymous artist is, judging from the photograph (and it's only my opinion, of course) fairly ugly and inappropriate. I don't believe graffiti and artwork by schoolchildren is much better because it will inevitably be defaced by yobs in the course of time.
I can't see that an underpass is any place for decoration at all, in fact. Better that artwork be displayed in a school or public building.

A tree planting sounds to me like a much more worthy and permanent memorial.

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dontknowynot says...
2:33pm Thu 30 Aug 12

@roy then really your post was irrelevant, your posting at 2.12 is factually wrong in that " I don't believe graffiti and artwork by schoolchildren is much better because it will inevitably be defaced by yobs in the course of time." is factually wrong in that during the circa 8 years since local children painted the underpass (organised with soul survivor charity, residents association and local schools) there has been remarkably little graffiti.
I do hope that as promised some new artwork goes up in the underpass by a new generation along with a replacement tribute to Dan Rush.

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Roy Stockdill says...
2:48pm Thu 30 Aug 12

If every victim of murder or a road accident were to be commemorated by graffiti, there wouldn't be an underpass, bridge, building, public park or road in the land that wouldn't be covered in ugly daubs.

As I have said, that is not the British way of commemorating people who have died. The British - well, those of a certain class and intellect, anyway - always used to mark death with quiet dignity and largely in private, surrounded only by the deceased's family, loved ones and close friends. It is not an occasion for vicarious outpourings of public grief and vulgar graffiti memorials on the part of those who never knew the person concerned.

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garston tony says...
11:00am Fri 31 Aug 12

Roy the idea of placing some sort of memorial where someone has sadly died or in their memory is not a modern concept at all. Leaving flowers at the scene of road accidents has been a common gesture for decades, long before Diana for instance. And I'm sure you're well aware of the numerous statues and plaques around London say in memory of historical figures many of whom were relevant at the time but unknown now.A memorial is a VERY British thing Roy, stop trying to stir for the sake of it.

As to residents/locals response it appears consultation was attemped but no one engaged. But ultimately it is the wishes of the family which matter and they it seems have and are being consulted so whats the problem?

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dontknowynot says...
11:09am Fri 31 Aug 12

Tony:- Yes but the one annoying thing seems to be that the consultation seems to have happened after the work started...

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phall lover says...
11:27am Fri 31 Aug 12

Roy Stockdill wrote:
Terrible as this incident must have been for the lad's family, I'm afraid I find the whole concept and modern trend of turning the scenes of murders, road deaths and other violent incidents into shrines to the victim positively distasteful and unBritish. It seems to be happening every day now - every time there's a murder or someone killed on the road the scene rapidly becomes a shrine with flowers, notes, letters, etc., not to mention Facebook pages. By all means, let the family have a memorial to the boy but more discreet and somewhere more private. The concept of vicarious public grief - often for someone they never knew - says much about those who go in for this sort of thing. It's as if they are saying to the world "Look at me, aren't I a caring person?" and wallowing in the boost to their self esteem. It can all be dated back to the death of Princess Diana, when the nation in my opinion went stark, staring bonkers over the death of someone the vast majority never knew. I can still recall with a shudder the TV scenes of people weeping and wailing and throwing flowers onto the car carrying her coffin as it went up the motorway. This never used to be the British way of dealing with death. We as a nation used to deal with death privately and with dignity, not turning it into some sort of public charade of vicarious grief riddled with cloying sentimentality.
I remember posting on this site the same veiws you have only it was about the headstone outside Watford Girls Grammer School on Wigginhall Road. The big public display of grief for all to see .What are cemetery's for and gardens of remembrance for? I expect you and I will get some strong comments back on this one as I did back then.

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Roy Stockdill says...
12:13pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I remember as a 12-year-old the funeral of King George VI in 1952 and later that of Winston Churchill in 1965. Neither occasion was marked by national weeping and wailing and vicarious public displays of grief - unlike the death of Diana - but both were extremely dignified occasions with people standing silently in respect. Whatever Garston Tony may claim, THAT always used to be the British way of dealing and coping with death, i.e. quietly and with dignity. I do not ever remember in my younger days people placing flowers at the scene of a murder or road death. To me this is entirely a trend of the younger generation and says much about their adopting a somewhat hysterical attitude. I don't recall seeing grown men weep copious tears on television either before Paul Gascoigne crying when England were knocked out of some cup or other! Bottling up one's grief and sorrow and coping with it privately was always the British way, at least to we of a certain generation.

It's entirely up to the family, of course, but personally I would not wish to see a memorial to a lost loved one as a piece of crude graffiti in an underpass.

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Roy Stockdill says...
12:14pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I remember as a 12-year-old the funeral of King George VI in 1952 and later that of Winston Churchill in 1965. Neither occasion was marked by national weeping and wailing and vicarious public displays of grief - unlike the death of Diana - but both were extremely dignified occasions with people standing silently in respect. Whatever Garston Tony may claim, THAT always used to be the British way of dealing and coping with death, i.e. quietly and with dignity. I do not ever remember in my younger days people placing flowers at the scene of a murder or road death. To me this is entirely a trend of the younger generation and says much about their adopting a somewhat hysterical attitude. I don't recall seeing grown men weep copious tears on television either before Paul Gascoigne crying when England were knocked out of some cup or other! Bottling up one's grief and sorrow and coping with it privately was always the British way, at least to we of a certain generation.

It's entirely up to the family, of course, but personally I would not wish to see a memorial to a lost loved one as a piece of crude graffiti in an underpass.

Report this post »

Roy Stockdill says...
12:14pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I remember as a 12-year-old the funeral of King George VI in 1952 and later that of Winston Churchill in 1965. Neither occasion was marked by national weeping and wailing and vicarious public displays of grief - unlike the death of Diana - but both were extremely dignified occasions with people standing silently in respect. Whatever Garston Tony may claim, THAT always used to be the British way of dealing and coping with death, i.e. quietly and with dignity. I do not ever remember in my younger days people placing flowers at the scene of a murder or road death. To me this is entirely a trend of the younger generation and says much about their adopting a somewhat hysterical attitude. I don't recall seeing grown men weep copious tears on television either before Paul Gascoigne crying when England were knocked out of some cup or other! Bottling up one's grief and sorrow and coping with it privately was always the British way, at least to we of a certain generation.

It's entirely up to the family, of course, but personally I would not wish to see a memorial to a lost loved one as a piece of crude graffiti in an underpass.

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Roy Stockdill says...
12:16pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I apologise for the double posting but this website is often somewhat quirky!

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dontknowynot says...
5:09pm Fri 31 Aug 12

Roy Stockdill wrote:
I apologise for the double posting but this website is often somewhat quirky!
most other people seem to cope plus it is hard to tell if you are double posting or just repeating the same stuff.
You clearly have not traversed the cow lane underpass, and therefore are unfamiliar with the childrens artwork that was painted over prior to Tuesdays "consultation" . No doubt "The British - well, those of a certain class and intellect, anyway" don't walk down the Cow Lane underpass. This mere serf does walk down the Cow Lane underpass, found the tribute to Dan Rush to be in keeping with the art work and am slightly peeved that the other serfs were not consulted prior to painting over the childrens work. That said I welcome the new art and decoration.

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Roy Stockdill says...
5:31pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I assure you I do not deliberately repeat multiple posts! What I do find is that sometimes this website hangs up for what seems like an eternity, so I may have clicked on the "Submit" button more than once which does result in the message going through more than once.

I can also assure you that I have walked down the Cow Lane underpass in order to get to my doctor's surgery which is on the Meriden estate (we don't have a surgery in the Avenues, since council estates seem to take priority in these politically correct times). I do not recall, however, seeing the graffiti mentioned - but, then, I repeat my view that graffiti in an underpass is not a suitable place for artwork by children or anyone else.

Shouldn't children's artwork be displayed in their school, a college, museum, etc, to be seen where parents and others can enjoy it? I find public graffiti largely crude, vulgar and an eyesore.

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dontknowynot says...
5:48pm Fri 31 Aug 12

oh the PC rubbish and petty snobbery, why oh why oh why are you spouting such trash, "the Avenues" are part of Meriden Ward historically both are part of the Meriden/Munden estate as is chunks of "the Tudors" As for the doctors surgery whilst it may be on the wrong side of the tracks for you the same could be said about the school for me, more swings and roundabouts than PC .
As for the taste or not of the tribute well yes it is personal but it is snobery to say things like "The British - well, those of a certain class and intellect, anyway".

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Roy Stockdill says...
6:53pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I have no idea why the Meriden junior school was shut and the children transferred to Lea Farm on the other side of the underpass, which is what I assume you are referring to. Perhaps you should ask Watford Borough Council and Dotty Thornhill or the Herts CC.

Yes, my doctor's surgery is on "the wrong side of the tracks" for me, not because it's on a council estate but because it's quite a long walk from my home and I have a dodgy hip!

Your comments about snobbery are so much nonsense. Personally, as I keep saying, I find graffiti memorials to be vulgar and crass and indicative of a certain lower class mentality.

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Lil_ol_me says...
8:11pm Fri 31 Aug 12

I live on the on meriden. Do not understand why everyone is so snobby.

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