A commemorative sculpture of John Lewis supersedes a previous Confederate memorial in Georgia.
Known Jamaican sculptor Basil Watson crafted the statue, titled the John Lewis Memorial. It was positioned on August 16 within Decatur Square, in front of the Historic Decatur Courthouse.
The statue stands tall at 12 feet, perched atop a granite base, with Lewis depicted showing his affection towards others through a gesture of placing his hands over his heart, a frequent habit of his.
A pioneer in civil rights
An icon and influential figure in the Civil Rights Movement, Lewis was a devoted Democrat who consistently advocate for social reforms and equality.
Lewis was among the initial Freedom Riders who rode on segregated buses in the '60s to protest against segregation in the South. He proceeded to become the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and was one of the “Big Six” civil rights leaders who organized the March on Washington, where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his renowned “I Have a Dream” speech.
In 1965, Lewis endured brutal beatings at the hands of police and state troopers in Alabama while leading hundreds of peaceful civil rights marchers in the first Selma to Montgomery march, an event which became infamously labeled as “Bloody Sunday.”
Lewis served as a US representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District from 1987 until his demise in 2020. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2011 for his lifelong commitment to civil rights and equality.
Swapping a symbol of discord
A 30-foot Confederate obelisk erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1908 had stood in Decatur Square for around 110 years.
It had text engravings on all four sides of its base, celebrating the values of the Confederacy. The engravings claimed those who erected the monument were bearing witness to the future, unaware it would eventually be dismantled and replaced by a new symbol of tranquility and progress.
The obelisk drew national attention as a symbol of discord during the 2020 period of racial introspection, following the summer protests sparked by George Floyd's homicide.
A Georgia judge ordered the obelisk's removal in June 2020, declaring that it posed a public nuisance as a focal point of protests and vandalism. The statue was demolished later that month as crowds erupted in cheers.
“A monument that represented prejudice, disunity, and hostility will be replaced by a monument honoring a man who cherished this nation, embracing everyone of all skin tones,” DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond stated in 2022, highlighting the removal of the Confederate monument in 2020 as “one of the proudest moments” of his tenure.
CNN’s Devon M. Sayers contributed to this report.
The John Lewis Memorial, a tribute to Lewis's lifelong fight for equality, now stands where the Confederate obelisk once did, serving as a symbol of unity for the community. Despite initial resistance from some community members, US and local officials agreed that the time had come to replace the divisive monument with one representing progress and inclusion.
