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Harvey Milk, the political activist played by Sean Penn in the film of the same name that came out on Friday, is famous in America for being the first openly gay man elected to public office. As a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, he led the campaign against Proposition 6, a law that would have made it illegal for gay teachers to work in California's public school system. When Milk was assassinated in 1978 he was hailed as a martyr for gay rights.
Defeating Proposition 6 was Milk's greatest political achievement but he won another victory that shouldn't be forgotten. Shortly after being elected he launched a campaign to clear the dog mess off San Francisco's streets. As a result, a city ordinance was passed making it illegal for dog-owners to stand by while their pets fouled the pavement. This became known as the “pooper scooper law” and it was quickly taken up by every other city in America.
Incredibly, it took 18 years before a similar law was passed in England and Wales. However, it has made little impact here compared with America. In New York, where I lived for five years, dog-owners are very conscientious about complying with the law, dutifully following their pets around with little plastic bags. In London, by contrast, I have yet to see a single person picking up after their dog.
This is particularly worrying if you happen to have young children. When I take my five-year-old and three-year-old to the local park I have to be constantly vigilant.
This isn't just squeamishness on my part. Dog faeces often contains Toxocara canis, a parasite that can cause stomach upsets, sore throats, asthma — even blindness. I've become so paranoid about this that I now spend my weekends picking up the dog mess on my street.
The reason the law is so ineffective here is that no one is willing to take responsibility for enforcing it. According to the 1996 Dog Act, people who fail to pick up after their dogs can be issued with a fixed penalty notice, either by a policeman or a local authority officer.
However, when I called the Metropolitan Police to find out how many fines had been issued in the past 12 months I was referred to my local authority, and when I asked the same question of Ealing Council I was referred to the Metropolitan Police.
If Boris Johnson wants to be re-elected in 2012 he should make this his number one priority. As Harvey Milk said, “Whoever can solve the dog-s**t problem can be elected mayor.”
TOBY LOVED
Martin Amis and Friends, a hilarious exhibition of photographs at the National Portrait Gallery depicting literary London in the late 1970s.
