The Cleveland Indians became the Guardians in 2022, but campaigners are still trying to remove insensitive references and mascots across the country. This is most noticeable in sports and schools, but a Cincinnati used car dealer is drawing flak for a 42 foot (12.8 meter) tall sign featuring a stereotypical Indian.
A Change.org petition, noticed by CityBeat, called for a protest of the sign on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in honor of his “anti-racist legacy.” It described the sign as an “utterly racist” caricature of a Native American that has “visibly marred a busy intersection in northern Cincinnati for well over six decades.”
It went on to claim the sign was “erected by a wealthy racist car dealer” and used to promote Cherokee Motors. That particular company reportedly used “blatantly racist ads” such as “We’re on a war path against high prices” and “We no scalp-um.”
Cherokee Motors has given way to MotorTime Auto Sales, but the petition claims the owners have “adamantly refused to remove” the sign. As a result, they want people to protest.
More: Cherokee Nation Wants Jeep To Stop Using Their Name On Vehicles
Back in 2017, Cincinnati Magazine reported the sign was originally commissioned by businessman Walter Schott, who owned Sky Pontiac in College Hill and leased the property in Carthage, where the sign stands, as a used car lot. Since appearing in the 1950’s, there have reportedly been multiple unsuccessful attempts to get it removed.
That seems unlikely to change as the owner of MotorTime Auto Sales released a statement to FOX 19 saying, “The historical significance of the sign is solely a trademark of Pontiac, the vehicle. Over the years, it has become a landmark, a sign that brings color and happiness to the valley.” They went on to describe it as a “piece of AmeriCARna.”
The dealer’s website is dated, but it prominently features the Indian and notes they’re located “Where Paddock Meets Vine At the Big Indian Sign.”
