It started as something of a joke. A New England man suggested to Detroit Mayor Dave Bing that they should build a statue in honor of RoboCop, the science fiction classic that was set in the city, in an attempt to improve the city’s image (and likely bring in a fair share of movie-loving tourists). Bing rejected the suggestion because, well…it’d be a little odd for a mayor to OK a statue of cyborg crime fighter.

Rejection be damned, fans of RoboCop everywhere started to call for the statue to be built anyway, and a movement began to raise the funds necessary. While some still think it would be wrong to have a figure associated with such a violent franchise displayed publicly, donations started pouring in, including one weighing in at $25,000 — half of the $50,000 goal that was set.