A debate over responses to the same sex marriage postal survey is being played out in paint.
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Anyone driving over Dr George Mountain from Bega in recent weeks may have noticed the back of the Tarraganda sign painted in all the colours of the rainbow – repeatedly.
Only days after first being painted, the initial rainbow was gone under a coating of white, then the word “Yes!” appeared, then it too was gone.
A local resident who wished not to be named said the sign had been painted and re-painted a number of times over the last three weeks.
“It is a fairly tame contribution to the debate,” the resident said.
“There’s obviously someone around supporting both ‘yes’ and ‘no’.
“Lots of people have done their own personal things, I haven’t seen any rude words or anything.”
The resident said the rainbow pattern had been painted over at least four times, but returned on Wednesday with the word “equal”, even after a threatening sign was left written on cardboard.
“If u (sic) paint it again – I’ll take the sign”, it read.
The resident said the sign is not necessary as it sits in the locality of Dr George, and a further Tarraganda sign is in place before the golf course.
“I have always wondered why it was put there, it’s a bit odd,” they said.
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In the past, the rainbow flag has represented the legacy of the Inca Empire and the International Co-operative Alliance.
American Revolutionary War writer Thomas Paine proposed it should be used to signify neutral ships during wars, and it was also pushed to become the flag of Armenia after the nation regained independence.
Most recently, it has become most commonly known as representing pride in the LGBTQI community, after being designed by artist Gilbert Baker in 1978.
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