Mission bells has been one of California's most divisive images and for years the symbols have increasingly been removed and criticized as reminders of colonialism and oppression of Native Americans.

Few symbols in California are as ubiquitous as the roadside markers shaped like mission bells that flank state highways and the streets of coastal cities from San Diego to Sonoma along the so-called ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. UC Santa Cruz employees David Jessen, left, and Mitch Smith, remove an "El Camino Real" bell marker from campus during a ceremony ...