JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A petition to rename Jacksonville's Beach Boulevard to John the Baptist is more than halfway to its goal of accumulating 1,000 signatures Wednesday.
The petition was launched on change.org sometime in August and has 570 signatures as of 3:45 p.m. Sept. 2.
The petition mentions the city's move to rename Jacksonville's prominent parks and sites that feature names of Confederate soldiers and controversial figures, saying John the Baptist should also be considered in renaming discussions.
"In Jacksonville, we are already revisiting the naming of schools, streets and other prominent sites that feature names associated with racism and oppression," the petitions said. "We believe John the Baptist Boulevard should be considered as an option during these renaming discussions."
According to our partners at the Florida Times-Union, the petition was started by Waste disposal executive John Arwood and developer Toney Sleiman.
"It is not an off-the-wall idea. I have always been trying to lead people to Jesus," Arwood said to the Times-Union. "... I was just shocked that nobody had named a road after a Biblical person, somebody well-known. And the reason why it's Beach Boulevard is because it leads to the water."
To learn more about the petition, click here.
