East Campus Bridge
From Duke Wiki
 Members of the Eco Olympics Committee paint the bridge | |
| Location | East Campus |
|---|---|
The East Campus Bridge is a free-speech zone on campus, where any student may express his or her views, no matter how outrageous, provided he or she has the paint to do it.
Contents |
[edit] Interesting Facts
- Each year Project BUILD paints the bridge in honor of the freshman accepted to the program.
- The bridge has a sordid history of censorship, particular against the LGBT community.
- In 2006, a Christian group painted the bridge completely white and proclaimed "He is risen" in the days following Easter.
- Vandals later wrote, "Satan Lives!" and several other insensitive remarks on the bridge
- Buses cannot pass each other under the bridge because it is too narrow - they must wait for one to pass through before the other can go, extending some trips by five minutes or more.
[edit] History of the Bridge
Generations of Duke students have painted graffiti on the bridge between East and West campus. The brightly colored concrete and paint-splashed sides serve as a billboard for fraternities, sororities, activists and student groups.
[edit] Recent News
Starting in 2006, students will temporarily have to find another place to advertise.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation plans to rebuild the bridge, which will soon begin to deteriorate. The rebuilding project, which will span 1 to 2 years, also allow emergency vehicles to pass under Main Street on Campus Drive. Due to its age, DOT officials aren't sure how it was constructed or what it might cost to restore or renovate, so it is more cost-efficient to replace it.
The new bridge also will give students a clean palette. Generally all graffiti must be removed from public bridges immediately. But since the graffiti has a long-standing tradition at Duke, the DOT allows it to remain. [1]
