'Black Lives Matter' Sign Stolen From Annapolis Church

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- A banner supporting the "Black Lives Matter" civil rights movement has been stolen from outside an Annapolis church.

The Capital of Annapolis reports that the sign was stolen Sunday morning from the Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis.

The large black and yellow sign read "Black Lives Matter" and was hung during a ceremony on Sept. 30. The church's pastor Rev. Fred Muir says the church received numerous angry calls in the immediate aftermath of the ceremony, but the complaints had subsided.

A similar banner at the nearby St. Philips Episcopal Church was vandalized in October, while the Annapolis Friends Meetinghouse has had two banners stolen.

The three congregations have joined together to organize a Black Lives Matter weekend Dec. 19-20 and will include a banner-hanging ceremony at St. Philips.