DECATUR, Ga. — A large bronze statue of the late civil rights leader and Georgia congressman Jan Lewis was installed Friday at the site where a controversial Confederate monument stood in the city square for more than 110 years before it was dismantled in 2020.
Work crews carefully moved the 3.7-metre-high statue into place as internationally acclaimed sculptor Basil Watson watched intently.
“It’s exciting to see it go up and it’s exciting for the city, because of what it represents and what it replaces,” Watson said, as he helped with the installation process.
Lewis was known for his role at the forefront of the civil rights movement and urged others to “get in big trouble” for a cause he saw as vital and necessary. In DeKalb County, where the Confederate monument stood for more than a century, protesters have called for “get in big trouble” and for the obelisk to be removed quickly.
In 2020, the stone obelisk was lifted off its pedestal with straps as onlookers in Decatur, Georgia, chanted, “Just drop it!” as police held the obelisk at a safe distance. The obelisk was erected in 1908 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
Groups including the Beacon Hill Black Alliance for Human Rights and Hate Free Decatur have pushed for the monument’s removal since the deadly White nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, 2017.
The monument was among several across the country that became focal points for protests against police brutality and racial injustice following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. The city of Decatur subsequently asked a Georgia judge to order the removal of the monument, which has been frequently vandalized and marked with graffiti, saying it had become a threat to public safety.
Lewis’ statue will be officially unveiled on August 24.