He lives in a very ugly part of town and he's making it worse with his self-indulgent vandalism on other people's property.
Shaun lives in a nice part of town where there's no grubby graffiti but there's rich people who pay the taxes which provide the scholarship so the young vandal can hang out in the nice part of town .
Really? You watched the whole movie and that's all you came up with? I just bet you are a laugh riot at parties. But since you're so concerned about the tax base in San Pedro, California, the reality is, Zach probably pays a bigger percentage of his diner income in taxes than Shaun's step-father pays. The poor and middle class always shoulder the load, while the affluent enjoy tax breaks.
The way I see it, giving Zach that scholarship is the least those rich folks can do.
Sister, when I've raised hell, you'll know it!