Maryland City Removes Halloween Display Likened to Lynchings
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Maryland mayor has bowed to pressure from the local NAACP and taken down a Halloween display that some complained evoked images of lynchings.
The controversial Halloween display in Frederick, Md., featured three faceless dummies hanging from a willow tree. Guy Djoken, president of Frederick County's NAACP chapter, had called on Mayor Jeff Holtzinger to order parks officials to remove the display, which Djoken called "disturbing."
Holtzinger refused at first, saying the display was harmless and accusing the NAACP branch of using the issue to "get publicity" and "justify" its existence. But news broke Friday evening that the mayor had relented and ordered the display taken down.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The dummies, clad in jeans and stuffed shirts, were hung in Baker Park from ropes affixed to their torsos up to 30 feet in the air.
Earlier, Holtzinger said the complaints were evidence of "political correctness getting out of hand," though he acknowledged receiving "some calls" from concerned parents of children at a nearby school, and he said parks officials will rethink their display next year.
Djoken said he received a lot of phone calls complaining about the display.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"When you have people hanging in the trees, especially that high, the result is that it's making a lot of people feel uncomfortable," he said, adding that whoever was responsible for planning and constructing the display should be given sensitivity training.
Resident Reid Fiester told the Frederick News Post the dummies reminded him of "lynchings."
Bryan Jachowski, who saw the display while walking throughthe park, told FoxNews.com he saw nothing wrong with the holiday display.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It just looks like somebody was having some Halloween fun," he said. "I have no problem with it whatsoever."
Djoken disagreed, saying he expected Holtzinger to "do the right thing" and immediately remove the decorations.
"If nothing's done, I'll have to press on," he said. "I'm telling you, when you look at it, it looks like someone is hanging from the tree. It's pretty graphic."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}FoxNews.com's Joshua Rhett Miller contributed to this report.