In an episode that Bangor, Maine residents are calling “chilling,” the town’s celebration of Kwanzaa has been canceled after threats of violence were made against the area’s African-Americans. A 75-year-old man, who is currently at large, has threatened repeatedly to shoot members of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and a court document reports that he also said, “Maine should be a ‘white’ state,” according to BangorDailyNews.com.

In light of the threats, NAACP meetings have been held in secret, with guards posted at the door. The Kwanzaa celebration, which would have taken place at a local Unitarian Universalist Church, has been canceled, though the group is hoping to be able to publicly mark Martin Luther King Day in January.