A recent petition that seeks to order the replacement of Russian Empress Catherine the Great that sits in Odessa, a large city within Ukraine, with a new statue depicting a gay porn star has managed to garner enough signatures that the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky must now consider it and issue a decision.
The aforementioned petition, which was created originally by Ukrainian activists and posted directly to the official website of the President of Ukraine on the 20th of May, has managed to gather well over 26,000 signatures as of this past Wednesday. It seeks to replace the current statue of the late 18th-century ruler with a statue of Billy Herrington, an American porn star. The petition labels Catherine the Great as a “controversial historical figure whose actions caused great damage to Ukrainian statehood and culture,” and issues the demand that the statue is taken down as a way to fight Russian culture.
“Catherine II is a controversial historical figure whose actions caused great damage to Ukrainian statehood and culture,” explains the petition. “The very fact of erecting this monument was a terrible mistake, and every day of its continued existence signals that Odesa is in the zone of Russian cultural influence. It’s time to change that.” The petition argues that the statue needs to be taken down in an effort to renounce “infamous” Russian heritage and as a “loud statement that Odessa is not some provincial town of the Russian Empire.” Going further, it claims that the monument should be replaced as a “clear signal that Ukraine supports the LGBT community.”
The petition goes even furth when it states that the erecting of a replacement statue of the porn star would be “fun and funny,” and states that “all students of Odesa universities will be able to drink beer with Billy Herrington after receiving their diploma.” It also states that “the figure of Billy Herrington has a great cultural influence on the Internet and the appearance of such a monument will become a very popular tourist attraction.” The statue would be a prime target for “memes,” explains the petition.
The constitution of Ukraine contains a section that protects the right of its citizens to petition both the national and local governments. As stated by Article 40 of the document:
“Everyone shall have the right to file individual or collective petitions, or to personally appeal to government authorities, local government, officials and officers of these authorities that are obliged to consider the petitions and provide a substantiated reply within the term established by law.”
As reported by the Kyiv Post, a popular Ukrainian English-language newspaper, any petition that breaks the 25,000 signature barrier is automatically sent before the President of Ukraine for consideration and decision. Due to this, the President has a total of 10 days to issue response from the day the petition landed on his desk.
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