Is Gritty played out at this point?

Is it too much Gritty, too soon?

Guess not, at least from the person or people who put together a petition to replace the Frank Rizzo mural in South Philly with the new Flyers mascot.

The Rizzo jawn is at the corner of 9th and Montrose in the Italian Market. You might remember him as the former mayor who apparently did some shit back in the day before most Crossing Broad readers were born. I won’t get political, but for various reasons, people want this mural to be replaced and they want the statue of Rizzo in Center City to go away, too.

Dan McQuade, who is now at Deadspin, once had an idea for what do about the statue dilemma:

The petition to alter the RIzzo mural features this description, in part:

The presence of this mural (as well as the foreboding statue of Rizzo at 15th & JFK) not only reminds us of Rizzo’s brutal legacy it also highlights the deep disconnect between the city we want and the unfortunate reality of the city that many of us have had.

Even Philadelphia’s wonderful Mural Arts program is currently seeking input from citizens to help decide the fate of the Rizzo mural.

Enter Gritty, the Philadelphia Flyer’s beloved, furry mascot. In the two weeks since his introduction, the city has fallen in love with Gritty and his goofy, slightly manic persona. Wild, ecstatic and a little rough around the edges, Gritty embodies the fighting spirit of our city and the joyous hope for its future. This is why we propose that the Frank Rizzo mural be replaced with a Mural of Gritty!

Seems reasonable to me.

For what it’s worth, we’ve got a mural up here in the Fishtown/Kenso area featuring a raccoon eating a pretzel:

Since this already exists, I personally believe that a Gritty mural would be fine in South Philly.

As of posting, 768 people signed the petition.