The Joplin Globe has the story. A local woman says that a lawn jockey in front of the Galena Historical Museum along Route 66 is racist.
One fellow who commented on the story cites a Web site that claims the “Jocko” statues are not racist, but a symbol of a black boy’s heroism during the Revolutionary War. It’s also claimed that these statues helped point out Underground Railroad homes for runaway slaves. I cannot verify whether the stories presented on the site are true. Besides, once-revered symbols can be twisted and bastardized over time, as this one may have been.
I think I have a solution. The Galena Historical Museum is a historical museum, after all. I think you need to place a small plaque in front of the statue, explaining that the lawn jockey comes from an earlier era in which blacks were more marginalized and that it may be racially offensive. That way, you can still display it, disavow any possible racial stereotypes from it, and give visitors a history lesson, to boot.
I wouldn’t let this controversy dissuade you from visiting the museum. It contains a lot of artifacts and memorabilia from Galena’s colorful, tumultuous past.