Congressman John Lewis (D-GA) is photographed in his office in the Canon House office building in Washington, DC on March 17, 2009. (Photo by Jeff Hutchens/Getty Images)
DECATUR, Georgia. – DeKalb County will honor the late civil rights leader and Georgia Congressman John Lewis this weekend with the unveiling of a new historical monument in Decatur Square.
The bronze monument is to be placed in front of the historic DeKalb County Courthouse, on the exact spot where a controversial Confederate monument stood for more than 110 years before it was dismantled in 2020.
On Friday, workers carefully placed the 3.66-meter-high statue in place as internationally renowned sculptor Basil Watson watched attentively.
“It’s exciting to see it come to life and exciting for the city because of what it represents and what it replaces,” Watson said as he oversaw the installation process.
It took four years to plan the memorial and a worldwide search for an artist before the John Lewis Commemorative Task Force chose Watson.
Workers remove Confederate monument from Decatur Square
It was a quick but delicate process to remove the obelisk Confederate monument from Decatur Square on Thursday evening.
Lewis was known for his role at the forefront of the civil rights movement, challenging others to get into “considerable trouble” for a cause he believed was vital and necessary.
The statue is scheduled to be officially unveiled on Saturday.
Confederate monument removed from Decatur Square
The Confederate Memorial at Decatur Square. (FOX 5)
The Confederate monument, named “The Lost Cause,” was erected on the square by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1908, the same year that the Georgia legislature ratified a constitutional amendment that disenfranchised African Americans.
In June 2020, a month before Lewis’ death, a judge declared the monument a public nuisance and ordered its removal.
“In short, the Confederate obelisk has become an increasingly frequent target of graffiti and vandalism, a figurative lightning rod for civic friction, and a potential disaster that could strike at any time if individuals attempt to forcibly remove or destroy it,” the judge wrote in his ruling.
Although Georgia state law provides that there is “no public monument honoring Confederate soldiers” that may be relocated, removed or altered in any way, the judge stated that the action was “an appropriate measure to remove the public nuisance and protect the obelisk.”
When it was removed, the stone obelisk was lifted from its base with straps, to the cheers of onlookers and shouts of “Just drop it!” The onlookers were kept at a safe distance by sheriff’s deputies.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
