EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (AP) — Residents of a southwestern Illinois community want a statue of the state’s third governor removed from a public plaza, arguing that he owned slaves and used his power to protect the practice.

The Edwardsville Intelligencer reports nearly 500 people have joined a Facebook group supporting petitioning the city to tear down a Ninian Edwards statute and rename the plaza with his moniker. Edwards died in 1833 and is also the namesake of the community but residents aren’t pushing to change that.

Lifelong Edwardsville resident, Kirk Schlueter, says he thinks it is one way to boost the civil rights movement happening nationwide.