AIKEN - The white scribbles of spray paint have been cleaned from a sign that was vandalized in downtown Aiken last week.
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A new Adopt an Aiken Parkway sign has replaced one that was vandalized last week in Aiken. Members of the gay and lesbian community have volunteered to pick up trash on Park Avenue.
Ron Cockerille/Augusta Chronicle
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But at least one critic says the signs shouldn't be there at all.
Allen Brodie, a former chairman of the county's Human Relations Board, said the city is promoting gay and lesbian lifestyles by erecting litter cleanup signs along Park Avenue that are sponsored by the "gay and lesbian community."
"I do not believe (the sign) should be allowed in such a place of prominence," he said. "It's in the downtown district where children ask questions. We need to try and encourage the best quality of life we can."
The signs should be placed in a more discreet location or removed altogether, he said.
The signs are part of the city's Adopt an Aiken Parkway program, and members of the gay and lesbian community have volunteered to pick up trash on Park Avenue between Hayne Avenue and Chesterfield Street. There are signs at either end of the parkway that announce the group's involvement.
The sign near Hayne Avenue was torn down the day it was put up about a month ago, said Sgt. David Turno of Aiken Public Safety. And on April 5 or 6, the same sign was sprayed with white paint.
Neither act of vandalism was reported as a crime, but public safety officers put the sign back up and cleaned it off.
Lisa Hall, a local lesbian and gay rights advocate, said she was saddened by the vandalism and Mr. Brodie's comments.
"I don't think anybody should say, 'We don't like this group; let's put them in the back of the bus,'" said Ms. Hall, the chairwoman of the CSRA Rainbow Alliance.
"You've got a group of people in the community who want to do something good and give back to the community in a positive way, and you've got a segment of the population who feel like it's OK to break the law just because of how they feel about something," Ms. Hall said.
Mr. Brodie, a past member of the Aiken County Council, insisted that moving the sign would not be discrimination. It's unfair, he said, to force taxpayers to pay for the signs, which are purchased by the city.
Mr. Brodie said he didn't mind parkway signs sponsored by groups such as the Garden, Rotary or Sertoma clubs. But the gay and lesbian sponsorship of a parkway crosses the line and becomes a moral issue, he said.
"This sign, to me, it falls in a different category," he added.
Jeff Krohn, who organized the cleanup effort, said people from several gay and lesbian organizations "wanted to do something to clean up the community."
"I don't understand why he would be offended by the signs being there," Mr. Krohn said. "There's a large gay and lesbian community in the state and Aiken. We all pay our taxes and should have the same visibility and rights as anyone else."
Several city leaders agreed with Mr. Krohn.
"If we're going to allow this program, we can't regulate the content (of the signs)," Assistant City Manager Bill Huggins said.
Anyone is entitled to participate in the city's road cleanup program.
Volunteers can sign on to clean the parkway of their choice by applying through the city's public works department. The program only requires that volunteers commit to a two-year contract and clean their parkway four times a year.
"We don't really care who it is; we're just happy someone wants to help," said Sue Burgess, the coordinator of the city's parkway program.
No formal complaints have been registered with the city.
The penalty for defacing the sign, which is considered city property, carries a $1,200 fine or as much as 30 days in jail.
"If it reoccurs, I don't know if we'll do a stakeout, but we have other means of doing surveillance," Sgt. Turno said.
Reach Krista Zilizi at (803) 648-1395, ext. 106, or krista.zilizi@augustachronicle.com.
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