New Statue Honoring Civil Rights Activist John Lewis Unveiled in His Home State of Alabama
The life-sized bronze sculpture of the congressman joins statues of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks in the Equal Justice Initiative’s Legacy Plaza in Montgomery
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A bronze statue of John Lewis, the celebrated civil rights leader and congressman, was unveiled last week in his home state of Alabama. Titled Steadfast Stride Toward Justice, the artwork depicts Lewis marching forward with his hands in his pockets.
The sculpture is located at the Equal Justice Initiative’s (EJI) Legacy Plaza in Montgomery, where statues of Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. debuted earlier this year, according to AL.com’s Heather Gann. It’s the first life-sized sculpture of Lewis in the state.
“John Lewis inspired so many of us to do the justice work we do today,” says Bryan Stevenson, EJI’s director, in a statement. “His humility, dedication and commitment to fighting for people who are excluded and disfavored is a model and legacy urgently needed today. We are thrilled to honor his life and leadership at Legacy Plaza.”
Born in 1940, Lewis was the son of sharecroppers living near Troy, Alabama. He developed a deep devotion to civil rights activism as a young man, participating in sit-ins, the Freedom Rides and the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. In 1965, when he was 25, Lewis led hundreds of people in a march across Selma’s Edmund Pettus Bridge, which would become known as Bloody Sunday. Law enforcement officers attacked the peaceful protesters—including Lewis, who fractured his skull.
“The national news that night showed the horrific footage of a state trooper savagely beating him with a nightstick,” recalled Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III in a statement after Lewis’ death. “But it also showed Mr. Lewis, head bloodied but spirit unbroken, delaying a trip to the hospital for treatment of a fractured skull so he could plead with President [Lyndon B.] Johnson to intervene in Alabama.”
In 1987, Lewis was elected to the United States House of Representatives, where he represented Georgia’s Fifth District for more than three decades until his death in 2020. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from former President Barack Obama in 2011.
“I just think the entire state of Alabama owes John Lewis so much, because he pulled us all out of the darkness of Jim Crow and racial segregation,” Stevenson tells the Associated Press. “He created the opportunities that we get to celebrate in so many of our public spaces, from football fields to basketball places. It wouldn’t have been possible without his courage.”
All three of the statues in the Legacy Plaza were created by Atlanta-based sculptor Basil Watson, who was present at the unveiling. Local officials and members of Lewis’ family also attended.
Lewis’ nephew, Jerrick Lewis, spoke at the ceremony. According to the Montgomery Advertiser’s Alex Gladden, he told the crowd that while the fight for equality “may be an ongoing one, I believe we would all agree we have come a mighty long way.”
“Around the world, there are many murals and statues and other landmarks that are dedicated to my uncle,” he said. “But to have a statue here in Montgomery proves that if the boy from Troy can make a lasting impact on the world, so can we.”
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