Residents of Whitesboro, a small town in upstate New York, will decide in the coming days if they'll finally replace a controversial village seal that depicts a white settler strangling a Native American man.
"We want to just put an end to it once and for all," Mayor Patrick O'Connor told WKTV. "Let the residents have the say about what seal they want to represent them and their home and their history."
Historians in Whitesboro, a town of less than 4,000 people in Oneida County, have long said the seal that dates back to 1883 merely shows "a friendly wrestling match that helped foster good relations" between the town's founder, Hugh White, and a member of the Oneida tribe -- an "important event" in its settling.
It's currently displayed on the town's trucks, highway equipment and official documents.
Many people over the years have pointed out that the seal may be racist. Fans of the NBC series Parks and Recreation say it's the kind of thing that would show up in Pawnee, Indiana.
I'm sorry, but the Whitesboro, NY seal situation reminds me too much of Pawnee, IN. #ParksandRec #amiright pic.twitter.com/PlOeCdh0J2— Chiki Agwuna (@chikiguna) August 19, 2015
The seal has been debated, locally and in the national media, for decades. But opponents of the seal finally saw traction in their criticism last July, when Americans reviewed all sorts of controversial symbols around the country in the wake of the Charleston church shooting (the shooter was seen proudly displaying the Confederate flag).
“The first thought that anyone has of this image is, 'There’s some white guy killing an Indian, strangling an Indian?'" Cliff Matias, director of the Redhawk Native American Arts Council, said told Boing Boing at the time. Others called for it to be immediately pulled from city property.
Mayor O’Connor wasn't sold on the idea.
“I am aware that people are upset about it," O’Connor told the Village Voice. "Some have reached out directly to me through my village email. And if they looked at the seal and went with an opinion based solely on what they’re looking at, I could understand why people would have concern about it."
"But," he added, "it’s actually a very accurate depiction of friendly wrestling matches that took place back in those days.”
Next week, residents will have a chance to choose from eight to 10 new seals for the town -- and finally determine just how friendly that wrestling match truly was.