Dear Mr. Pesci,
Indeed, I failed to ask facilities when the tunnels were last completely repainted, something I should have done. But there is no doubt (and plenty of proof) that student graffiti has been part of the tunnels for several decades, whether or not parts of it (or, as you say is the case, all of it) were painted over occasionally.
In my defense, I have pictures on my computer that I took of the Butt tunnels during my sophomore year. A lot of the graffiti down there includes numbers like “2001” or “’98.” To me, these numbers appear to be graduating years of the person who put them there or the year in which the graffiti was put there. During my time in the tunnels, the years I saw written on the walls dated back to well before I arrived at Wesleyan, certainly further back than “a little more than three years ago.” This is part of what led to my assumption and the use of the idea that the graffiti has been there for decades. But perhaps these numbers and the students I talked to claiming that the tunnels contain decades’ worth of graffiti were insufficient. I should have asked when the tunnels were last repainted in order to have been more accurate. …And I suppose maybe alumni tagging in the tunnels can explain the year numbers?
In any case, the walls of the tunnels have been lined with student graffiti for a long time, covering sterile paint jobs over and over again. Thank you for pointing out the error and answering the questions for my article, although it is curious that the people I contacted from ResLife and Physical Plant all had their answers coordinated through you instead of answering me personally and directly.
Best,
Matt
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