re: Sully statue to remain

So, I was reading a Texas Tribune article about this latest Sully kerfuffle:

quote:

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In a demonstration of the tension on campus, hundreds turned out over the weekend to protest both for and against the statue’s removal. More than 23,000 students have signed a petition to remove the statue of Ross, while 24,000 have signed a counter-petition to keep it. A campus spokeswoman declined to comment on next steps for the statue.

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Is this true? Did 23,000 current students actually sign this petition? Or was it 23,000 random people on the internet, having no ties whatsoever to TAMU?