Vandals Destroy Two Murals Honoring Zelenskyy In Fort Myers

FORT MYERS, FL — The Fort Myers arts community was rattled after a vandal destroyed two new murals showcasing Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The paintings, funded by the Fort Myers Mural Society, were created by artists Roland Ruocco and Erik Schlake over four days in March. The works were installed and unveiled along McGregor Boulevard at the Alliance for the Arts on March 13, Shari Shifrin, director of the Fort Myers Mural Society, told Patch.

One mural featured Zelenskyy, who is leading his country through the ongoing war with Russia, in front of the Ukrainian flag, while the other recreated a selfie video of the leader.

The murals have been targeted since they were installed. In just the few weeks that the works have been on display, someone stuck a piece of electrical tape on one depiction of Zelenskyy, giving him an Adolf Hitler-style mustache, Shifrin said. Another day, someone tried to etch words into one of the murals with a rock, though it wasn’t “very discernible.”

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The latest vandalism to the murals has been the worst, she said. Someone splashed them with red, white and blue paint, mixing in some silver stars.

“We look at this as a hate crime for Ukraine and the political position the United States has taken on (the war,)” said Shifrin.

Now, the organization is raising the funds needed to redo the murals and install security cameras. Through a GoFundMe campaign, they hope to raise $5,000. The group also plans to expand the project with the addition of at least six new murals at the site.

The Mural Society has received significant support from the community since the vandalism, which was first noticed Monday morning, according to the organization’s Facebook page.

“My phone has been ringing pretty strongly,” said Shifrin. “We’re certainly grateful that everybody wants to help recreate the murals and are just as disappointed as we are. They’re on a major roadway, where people see it all the time. A lot of people are appreciative of being reminded on their way to work that there’s plenty to be thankful for here and have a sense of empathy for what’s going on over there (in Ukraine.)”

She stressed that the murals aren’t meant to be political.

“It was supposed to evoke a humanitarian sense of empathy for humans. It had zero to do with politics,” she said. “There’s not one of us that’s a politically motivated person.”

Shifrin said the murals are meant to honor Zelenskyy and represent him the way Ukrainian people see him during the crisis in their country.

“He’s fighting for them. He’s been heroicized by his own people,” she said. “He’s not acting as our president. If you want to think he’s a Nazi versus a hero, that’s you. We’re not the ones standing in Ukraine while the bombs are going off.”

She hopes the new murals and the project’s expansion showcases the community’s solidarity with Ukraine.

“It certainly is a good reminder that they’re not alone in their crisis.”