Yesterday it was reported that Detroit’s Mayor Steve Bing took to Twitter to deny any plans for the city to erect a statue of Robocop as part of their revitalization plans. The Mayor’s office has been soliciting for suggestions online.
I’m sure the suggestion was tongue-in-cheek and the mini-firestorm it set off yesterday was probably equally playful. But as sympathetic as I am to Mayor Bing’s decision to reject the proposal, I’m personally disappointed it’s not happening.
Realistically, you don’t want to erect a statue of a character from a movie that was a pretty savage satire of commercialization in the United States (the police being owned by a large corporation) while using Detroit’s reputation for urban blight as a backdrop. I get that. Truthfully, you could argue that Robocop did more to harm Detroit’s reputation than help it. So why celebrate it.
But on the other hand, Robocop is awesome. There’s no two ways about it. If someone wanted to present me a statue of Robocop, I’d put it up in my front yard.
What’s your reaction to this disappointing news? What other cities might benefit from having statues of movie characters erected in their cities? Sound off below!