A bagel shop in Harlem faces community backlash over a piece of artwork that was on display outside the business.

The issues began on social media, when one content creator, Anastasia X, questioned the art display at Bo’s Bagels and whether it depicted blackface or not.

“I was like, wow, it’s a big old bagel,” Anastasia X told News 4. “I was like, I can see why some people have an issue with it.”

After sharing her video online, dozens of people responded in the comments section, also claiming offense at the promotional “bagel guy”, seen as an appropriation of Black culture.

“I think there’s a strong enough response from people that they feel there is an issue,” she continued.

As a result of the outrage, the owners have taken down the bagel sign outside the Harlem store, saying the fallout is far from over.

“That art to me was celebratory, positive,” Bo’s Bagels co-owner Ashley Dikos said. “He’s smiling, it’s a bagel, it’s a cartoon. It just wasn’t ever supposed to be controversial.”

Dikos and her husband have owned Bo’s Bagels on 116th Street for nearly 10 years. She says since the initial viral post, the store’s staff have faced threats and harassment.

Tom Sanford, the artist behind the design of “bagel guy”, spoke about what he wanted the piece of art to represent.

“I did not intend it to be necessarily African American, but I did want it to be of Harlem,” Sanford told News 4.

Sanford’s art has been featured in the bagel shop before, and elsewhere, with cutouts of Knicks players being displayed near City Hall recently. Despite the criticism, he stands by the design for Bo’s Bagels.

“Harlem is, along with the Bronx and other New York City neighborhoods, could be considered the cradle of hip hop culture, and to me, that’s [an] entirely positive thing,” he said.

As a result of the artwork, mixed feelings remained in the neighborhood.

“Different people are definitely gonna feel different about seeing this,” one pedestrian said.

For Anastasia X, she says she doesn’t want the owners or employees to be harassed, but she wishes they would acknowledge concerns differently.

“The owner and the artist are entitled to their beliefs, of course, but I think in terms of being responsive to the community there’s more that can be done besides leaving the bagel up or down,” she said.

At Bo’s, they’re hoping to put “bagel guy” behind them.

“Being a business owner is not for the faint of heart, for sure,” Dikos commented.