Controversy in Providence: Mural Honoring Slain Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Removed Amid Public Backlash

A mural dedicated to Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian refugee tragically killed while traveling on a train in North Carolina, is being dismantled following a wave of public discontent in Providence, Rhode Island.

On Tuesday, a construction crew was spotted at The Dark Lady, an LGBTQ+ venue in downtown Providence, as they worked to remove the unfinished mural. The artwork, which had been painted on canvas, was carefully lowered, folded, and taken away, according to reports from WJAR-TV.

Artist Ian Gaudreau acknowledged the decision to take down the mural, citing the local community’s backlash as the primary reason for its removal.

“Many individuals expressed their concerns, and those concerns were recognized, leading to the decision to dismantle the mural,” Gaudreau explained in an interview with WJAR-TV on Monday.

The mural’s removal came as residents and elected officials complained about the artwork. The office of Mayor Brett Smiley told Fox News that he wanted the artwork taken down, saying that the art is “divisive and does not represent Providence.”

“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 county is divisive and does not represent Providence,” Smiley said in a statement. 

He said he continued to “encourage our community to support local artists whose work brings us closer together rather than divide us.”

Chairman of the Narragansett Republican Party Anthony D’Ellena created a petition in an effort to keep the mural of Zarutska in Providence.

“This is exactly what Democrats do — they try to erase the memory of their victims and they don’t fix their soft-on-crime policies,” D’Ellena told WPRI-TV. “They erase the evidence, so no one sees the deadly price of their policies.”

“I want a local business here in Rhode Island to see this petition and to invite the artist to do a mural on their business,” he said.

On Sept. 9, 2025, Eoghan McCabe, CEO of the AI customer service company Intercom, posted on X that he would pledge $500,000 to paint 50 memorial murals across the country in Zarutska’s honor.

On Sept. 10, he posted that funding for 300 murals had been raised and that they were in touch with 800 artists. Elon Musk replied to his post with a pledge of an additional $1 million for the project.

WATCH: Video shows moments before Ukrainian refugee stabbed to death on Charlotte light rail

Zarutska, a 23-year-old refugee who fled her country after the Russian invasion, was stabbed to death in an unprovoked attack while riding the Lynx Blue Line light rail in Charlotte, N.C., last year. 

The suspect, Decarlos Brown Jr., 34, is charged with violence against a railroad carrier and mass transportation system resulting in death, which is a capital offense under federal law.

Decarlos Dejuan Brown Jr., 34, was arrested in Mecklenburg County and charged in the Aug. 22, 2025, stabbing death of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska aboard a Charlotte light-rail train. (Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office)

Records from the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction show Brown has a prior criminal history, including convictions for larceny, breaking and entering and armed robbery. 

“Iryna was riding home on the train when a deranged monster, who had been arrested over a dozen times and was released through no-cash bail, stood up and viciously slashed a knife through her neck and body,” President Trump said.