PENDLETON — The city of Pendleton will preserve sidewalk stamps no more.

At a Tuesday, Jan. 19, meeting, the Pendleton City Council unanimously voted to amend the city’s historic preservation ordinance to specifically prohibit the preservation of sidewalk stamps, defined as “lettering imprinted in historic sidewalks indicating street names, dates or the name of the installing contractor,” in the ordinance. The council’s vote follows up on Mayor John Turner’s December 2020 decision to halt the reinstallation or restamp of four sidewalk stamps commemorating Confederate figures.

At the meeting, Turner said the council’s vote was an indication the city was responsive to the concerns of its residents, but for Joshua Walker, it was “too little, too late.”

In November 2020, Walker broke a Jefferson Davis stamp and nailed in a pro-Black Lives Matter sign to it as an act of protest, leading to a misdemeanor criminal mischief charge.

Walker said he had planned to speak at the Jan. 19 meeting, where he would read aloud excerpts from Martin Luther King Jr.’s writings and speeches that criticized America’s economic and racial systems, and encouraged solidarity and organization. But as the meeting started, Walker got into an argument with Turner over Walker taking his hat off, a longtime informal council chamber rule under Turner. Walker said a police officer attempted to escort him out of the room, but he left voluntarily.

Walker said he regretted the incident, but he maintained the council’s failure to act on the Confederate stamps sooner was evidence of “microagression” and even “macroagression.”

“In these times, you need to make strong decisions about what we can and cannot do,” he said.

Walker’s departure left activist Briana Spencer as the only member of the audience to speak for or against the ordinance.

Spencer said she appreciated the council’s actions, but she urged the council to go further, including more outreach to marginalized communities.

Turner encouraged Spencer to join the Pendleton Historic Preservation Commission, the group that had originally decided to preserve the stamps, which were affected by street and sidewalk work being done along Southeast Byers Avenue. When Spencer said she was unsure if there was an available spot for her on the commission, Turner said he would make room for her.