A broken, naked Barbie doll hangs by the neck on a tree amongst a jumble of old toys including a plastic disco ball, a number of stuffed animals, as well as warnings written with paint on a wooden sign: “This is not a joke!” “Respect our neighborhood!”
This block of Troutman Street, between Irving and Knickerbocker Aves., breathes with darkness and intrigue. It regularly creates confusion, awe, sometimes fear, and most definitely plenty of Instagram photos of the surprised passersby. If you’re sensitive like Emily Tepper, who lives on the block, you can testify to feeling “some strange, crazy energy” being present in this little corner of Bushwick. So who is hanging the toys on the trees and what do they mean? And generally, what’s up with this block?
It is not a joke!
“This can’t be good… Good for the trees…”
“This can’t be good… good for the trees,” comments a woman in her sixties who carries two shopping bags and disappears in one of the houses.
