'Jefferson Square' sign to be taken down again

IT HAD APPEARED IN SQUARE WHERE ORIGINAL SIGN HAD LINKS TO SLAVERY

- ANDY PHILLIPS

A SIGN mysteriously put up in a city square which was originally stripped of its name due to links with slavery is to be taken down again.

The sign reading 'Jefferson Square' recently appeared on the site of the former Sir John Hawkins Square, which was stripped of its moniker in 2020 as part of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Plymouth City Council have now confirmed the sign is not official and no decision has yet been made over the renaming of the square.

But the owners of the business which the sign sits directly outside of, Cosmic Kitchen, have said they are removing the sign - despite it being an apparent tribute to their uncle Jefferson Vandike, who died earlier this year.

Twin sisters Gabriela and Lucia Evangelou, owners of the restaurant, said that while the sign was a touching tribute to Mr Vandike, who was better known as dance music DJ Apache, it was the right thing to do to remove the sign.

However, supporters of the business and the late Mr Vandike have already called for a petition to adopt Jefferson Square as a formal street name.

In a statement on their Facebook page, the owners of the restaurant said: "We were astonished to arrive to open up early a couple of weeks ago and see the 'Jefferson Square' sign outside the front door of Cosmic Kitchen. It looked so official and it was very moving to see.