PAW PAW, MI -- A billboard visible from I-94 has been erected in protest of the Paw Paw High School mascot.

The mascot Redskins, which is used for the school's sports teams, signs, spirit gear and other imagery, has been a source of contention in the community.

The billboard was placed on the north side of I-94, about a half mile west of the Paw Paw exit, by the Michigan Coalition Against Racism in Sports and Media, according to a press release from the organization.

The billboard displays the dictionary definition of Redskin as "very offensive and should be avoided."

Last year, town hall meetings and flooded Board of Education meetings offered various opinions from community members, students, graduates and members of the board.

The board voted in February 2017 to reinstate the name and imagery for all Paw Paw Public Schools after a nearly four-hour meeting where they heard from both sides of the aisle on whether the name was offensive to Native Americans.

Images had been removed in 2015 from all schools except the high school.

The sign is visible from the eastbound lanes of the highway.

Redskins is "an American Indian," and is deemed "usually offensive," according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

Arguments from the community said the word represented discrimination and acts of violence against Native Americans.

Redskins is "a colonial term referencing the bloody skins & scalps of Native people hunted for bounty," the release from the coalition against racism said.

"Native American themed sports names, stereotypical images, mascotry & the behaviors they incite have been proven detrimental to the mental and emotional health of Native youth, and are NOT a form of 'honor,'" the release said.

"Native Rights Mi," a Facebook group who has spoken out against the Paw Paw school district's use of the word, voiced support of the billboard Wednesday.