April 15 (UPI) — A pair of Nashville creatives started an online petition to rename the city’s airport after music legend Dolly Parton and have now amassed more than 50,000 signatures.
Comedian Lydia Popovich and Goat Song Records comedy label owner Dan Dion launched the Change.org petition in the wake of a failed attempt by state Rep. Todd Warner, R-Chapel, to have Nashville International Airport renamed for President Donald Trump.
The duo said they first started discussing a campaign to have the airport renamed in Parton’s honor about two years ago, and they finally started the petition when the time seemed right.
“Dolly’s a great Tennessean and great unifier who adds legitimacy to the south because her story resonates with everyone — rich, poor, gay, straight, or whatever your ethnicity or political affiliation is,” Popovich told The Nashville Tennessean. “All people smile when they talk or think about her — she’s the best of the south. That alone is an achievement deserving of reverence.”
The petition has so far amassed more than 50,000 signatures, and was even featured on Change.org’s official Instagram page.
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Parton addressed the campaign herself in a conversation with The Tennessean.
“I mean, it does sound like a lot of fun to say: ‘Your flight is departin’ from Nashville’s D. Parton,'” she said.
