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The mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, has once more criticized the mural project, now canceled, which was set to commemorate Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian refugee tragically killed while living in North Carolina. Her death, allegedly at the hands of a repeat offender on public transit, sparked widespread attention last year.
“It’s unfortunate how politics have seeped into every aspect of our lives, turning even tragedies into points of contention,” Mayor Brett Smiley remarked during an interview with WPRI. “We should focus on the tragedy of the loss, but instead, misinformation from our president and funding from certain right-wing billionaires have muddied the waters, affecting our community.”
Mayor Smiley criticized the mural initiative for bypassing the city’s unspecified “thoughtful process” for commissioning public art. The mural, although privately funded, was being painted on the wall of a private establishment.
The contentious mural of Iryna Zarutska, which remains incomplete, was located on the side of the Dark Lady club in Providence, captured on March 30, 2026. (David DelPoio/The Providence Journal/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)
Elon Musk played a significant role by donating $1 million to support the creation of public murals nationwide, highlighting Zarutska’s story.
“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,” said Smiley. “I didn’t stifle anyone’s speech, 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. There was really angry protests on both sides, a lot of hate speech online, and so I don’t think we’re a stronger, more united community because of this mural, and so I thought the best thing to do was just to take it down.”
Earlier this week, Smiley put out his first statement on the mural, calling it “divisive” and “misguided.”
Iryna Zarutska curls up in fear as a man looms over her during a disturbing attack on a Charlotte, N.C., light-rail train. (NewsNation via Charlotte Area Transit System)
“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,” the statement said, later adding that he wants to “encourage our community to support local artists whose work brings us closer together rather than divide us.”
The business that planned on displaying the mural was The Dark Lady, an LGBT bar in the city.
Facing backlash from the LGBT community and others, the owners of the bar first defended themselves, saying on Instagram, “Any of you who know us personally—even just for five minutes—realize the illicit intentions being portrayed here are completely false.”
The next day, the bar released a statement saying the project was being “temporarily” paused.
Booking photo of Decarlos Brown Jr., taken Sept. 14, 2022, following his arrest in Mecklenburg County. Brown, 34, is charged in the Aug. 22, 2025, stabbing death of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska aboard a Charlotte light-rail train. (Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office)
Still, the business faced intense heat.
On Tuesday, the bar said that after “reflecting and learning,” the project was officially shut down.
Zarutska was killed on Aug. 22 after she was randomly stabbed from behind on a Charlotte, North Carolina, light-rail train. The suspect in her unprovoked murder is Decarlos Brown Jr., who had a lengthy rap sheet, including convictions for larceny, breaking and entering, and armed robbery.Â
He had previously served five years in prison.
Fox News Digital reached out to Smiley’s office.Â