DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm David Greene. In Ukraine, people are pulling down symbols of that nation's communist past. It's a protest against Russian military aggression. And in the city of Odessa, one artist got really creative. He converted a statue of Lenin into Darth Vader - black mask, helmet and cape. The artist said American pop culture appears more durable than the Soviet ideal. And the force emanates from the statue - well, sort of. Vader's helmet reportedly serves as a Wi-Fi hotspot. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.