Remember that whole kerfuffle in Providence, Rhode Island, about business owners having a mural honoring Iryna Zarutska on their building?
After a vicious smear campaign led by Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, the business owners relented. But that wasn’t the end of the story. Now, another business has stepped up and is having the mural painted on its building.
From Fox News:
After left-wing activists in conjunction with Providence, Rhode Island, Mayor Brett Smiley launched an intense pressure campaign against a mural of slain Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, sparking the project's cancellation, another business in the city has stepped up to display the mural.
Opa the Phoenician, a Lebanese restaurant in Providence's historic Federal Hill, is now home to the mural, which artist Ian Gaudreau began working on Friday.
The previous location was The Dark Lady, an LGBT bar in the city's downtown. But that bar was browbeaten by critics into pausing and then canceling the project.
Smiley was the most prominent voice to speak out against the project.
"The murder of the individual depicted in this mural was a devastating tragedy, but the misguided, isolating intent of those funding murals like the one across the country is divisive and does not represent Providence," he said in a statement, adding that he wanted to "encourage our community to support local artists whose work brings us closer together rather than divide us."
Co-owner of Opa, Francois Karam, emphasized that the restaurant is owned by immigrants and the mural is a way to honor Zarutska's story as an immigrant.
"[Iryna] was once an immigrant chasing the American dream," Karam said, according to WJAR. "She worked to build a life for herself and lost it along the way. This mural is our way of honoring her on a building owned by an immigrant family who understands that journey."
#Update: A second chance for the Iryna Zarutska mural in Providence.
— Ryan Medeiros (@RRyanmedeiros) April 3, 2026
After controversy downtown, Opa The Phoenician on Federal Hill tells me they’ll host a new mural honoring the slain Ukrainian refugee.
Work is underway. @NBC10 pic.twitter.com/9iqi7OSh7J
The relocation has brought a measure of relief to some Providence residents. One individual told NBC 10 that she is “glad it’s being moved to somewhere a little more neutral, a little less offensive.”
The mayor used the fact that Elon Musk funded murals for Zarutska to turn residents against it. The Dark Lady initially pushed back against its critics. But after Smiley got involved, they caved and shut down the project completely.
“A private owner of a building decided to put a mural up that I don’t’ think he understood the full context of, and I was asked whether I thought it should come down, and I thought it should,” the mayor bloviated. He further argued that he “didn’t stifle anyone’s speech” and that “it was his decision whether to continue with it or to take it down, but it certainly wasn’t bringing us together as a community.”
Gaudreau blasted Smiley's argument, saying he was “saddened by the fact that the mayor has called for the work to be removed before I was allowed to finish speaking” and that “it is stifling my freedom of expression, my freedom of speech, and it’s unfortunate.”
I don't understand how moving the mural to a different location would somehow be less politically charged. It seems to me that the hard leftists in Providence just needed something to be outraged about.
The Dark Lady was not trying to make a political statement with the mural. It was only trying to honor someone who died tragically. What's funny is that those accusing the club of politicizing the event were actually the ones doing it. They wanted to inject politics into this. Nobody else did.
Either way, they are not getting what they want. The Dark Lady's ownership caved to the mob. But another business was willing to stand against them. In the end, the outrage was completely meaningless.
Editor’s Note: Do you enjoy Townhall’s conservative reporting that takes on the radical Left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join Townhall VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member