Change access/scope of C variable from static to global at compile time, without changing source code?

Question

Let's say, in my C executable project, I use a C library to which I have source access - in fact, the .c files of the library get built as part of the build process for my C executable.

Then, let's say in some of the library .c files, let's say exotic.c, there is something like:

static struct exotic_type all_exotic_array[NUM_EXOTIC_ITEMS][8];

... which the author of the library believes should remain hidden (ergo static) - but which, it turns out, I need a reference to in my code; therefore I'd like to make this variable's symbol publicly accessible.

So, in principle I could just erase the static keyword there and recompile - and I'd get the all_exotic_array as global. However, let's say I also do not want to change the source code of the library.

So in this context, I can intervene in the Makefile, when the individual library .c files get compiled. So:

• Is there a compilation switch, with which I could tell the compiler gcc (or linker ld?), while compiling exotic.c, something like: "please ignore the static storage class specifier of the symbol all_exotic_array, and make it available globally"?
• If not - is there any other action I could take (maybe after compilation of exotic.c but before linking my executable), to make the symbol all_exotic_array globally available?

I have seen

• Access of static variable from one file to another file
• Renaming symbols at compile time without changing the code in a cross platform way
• Access a global static variable from a .so file without modifying library
• Keep all exported symbols when creating a shared library from a static library

... which hint that there may be a possibility to do what I want, however I couldn't find exactly what to do in my use case.