Snooty, a beloved manatee who lived at the South Florida Museum, died Sunday, just days after his 69th birthday.
People were devastated by the loss of the manatee, who was a hometown hero in Bradenton, Florida.
People are beginning to leave tributes to #Snooty
All I'm saying is that Manatee County better throw Snooty the best dang funeral a manatee can have. #ripsnooty
And now, a petition has been created to replace a Confederate memorial statue near the aquarium with one of Snooty. It's already received over 4,800 signatures.
After hearing people talking about removing the local Confederate monument — something Pusateri called "a symbol of slavery, racism, bigotry, and divisiveness" — he thought it presented an opportunity to memorialize Snooty instead, a "positive symbol of what is good about the community," he said.
Support for the petition is quickly growing.
The best news out of #Florida today is that 4,000 people want to replace a confederate statue with a manatee statue https://t.co/OYM1FPPzwU
I can get behind this https://t.co/Si3V0TOOMM
i've never supported a petition more in my life https://t.co/is9NpGItJ4
People think it would be a beautiful, fitting tribute.
Um manatees>>>>>racist participation trophies any day! Please sign and share! https://t.co/sL98q2Vu5V via @Change
Way down south in the land of cotton Manatees won't be forgotten https://t.co/2MBGXKmBrd
This is the America I believe in: https://t.co/RAU8sxgvyT