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The Equal Justice Initiative unveiled a new statue last week honoring Civil Rights legend Rosa Parks at Legacy Plaza, across from the Legacy Museum in downtown Montgomery, Alabama.
The sculpture of Mrs. Parks is the first of three statues that will be erected in Legacy Plaza in the coming months. EJI plans to create a major statue honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and will honor the extraordinary John Lewis with a sculpture.
A gathering place for visitors to the Legacy Museum, Legacy Plaza is home to a brick sculpture honoring Civil Rights demonstrators and a mural created by local artist Kevin King.
The new Rosa Parks statue unveiled on February 14 was created by the acclaimed Atlanta-based sculptor, Basil Watson, who recently created a statue of Dr. King for the City of Atlanta, located near Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“This Black History month, on Valentine’s Day, there are many of us who want to express our love, appreciation, and gratitude to Mrs. Rosa Parks, whose extraordinary leadership inspired the whole world,” said EJI Director Bryan Stevenson. “As someone who had the privilege of spending time with Mrs. Parks, I can affirm that she had the kind of power and conviction that could absolutely change the world. We are thrilled to honor her at Legacy Plaza.”
The unveiling was attended by Mrs. Parks’s colleague and fellow Civil Rights advocate, Doris Crenshaw, who founded the Southern Youth Leadership Development Institute in Montgomery; Georgette Norman, former director of the Rosa Parks Museum in Montgomery; and Dr. Tommie Tonea Stewart, Dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Alabama State University.
