Joseph Sabino Mistick: Armstrong County welcome mat rolled up

When Chuck Pascal and the Armstrong County Democratic Committee decided to place a billboard with a welcoming message along one of the main roads into the county, they chose words that they hoped would reach and comfort as many people as possible.

Pascal, the county Democratic chairman and a prominent election law attorney, knew that our political conversation can be toxic these days, but he thought that the message was broad enough and kind enough to survive. After all, who can fault this: “No matter what you look like, who you love, what your religion, where you’re from, you’ve got a friend in Armstrong County.”

As it turns out, somebody did find fault. Just six days after the sign was installed, the committee was told by Huntington Billboards that it had to come down, citing a contract provision that allows the removal of messages that are objectionable or that attract controversy or negative publicity.

The billboard company also told Democratic committee vice chair Melanie Bowser that the owner of the land where the billboard sits has received death threats over the message. Pascal, who checked with police and was informed that there were no such reports, called that claim “just another red herring and outright lie.”

He points to a recent report at cleveland.com as the more likely explanation of Huntington Billboards’ sudden decision to cancel their contract and remove the message. According to the news site, Ohio State Rep. Jena Powell is the vice president of Huntington Billboards, and she is “one of the most socially conservative representatives in the Ohio House.”

The committee can look for another location, but nothing is as good as this one. It is directly across from an electronic billboard owned by Armstrong County businessman John Placek. And Placek has been posting messages for years that have riled Armstrong County citizens.

As reported by the Tribune-Review’s Tawnya Panizzi last month, Placek has used his billboard to target critical race theory, same-sex marriage and corrupt government, once comparing the FBI to the Gestapo, swastika and all.

An election denier, Placek said that he hears “a lot of positive feedback. People shake my hand and tell me it’s great.” And he added, “I’ll keep doing it every day until I see positive change in our society.”

That’s why Bowser called the location across from Placek’s sign the perfect spot to “clap back to the toxic stuff.” Pascal said, “A lot of people — people of color, LGBT people — have had a lot of difficulty feeling comfortable in their own community.”

The billboard company returned the committee’s money and even gave them the vinyl sign, making them whole. But making Armstrong County and the community whole will be tougher now that only one side of the big issues will be told.

After last week’s Tribune-Review report that the committee’s welcoming message had been taken down, Pascal was featured on Placek’s electronic sign in a way that is sure to raise his political profile. A photo of a smiling and confident Chuck Pascal is squarely centered on the wrong end of a donkey.

“But, hey,” Pascal says, chuckling, “It is a good Democratic donkey.”