Philadelphia is commissioning a statue to honor civil rights lawyer and economist Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander. The city held a public meeting on November 7 to discuss the project, and Creative Philadelphia, the public art office, emphasized Alexander’s legacy of “breaking barriers in academia and law” while advocating for underserved communities. Alexander, the first Black American to earn a Ph.D. in economics in the U.S. (1921) and the first Black woman to graduate from Penn Law (1927), left a powerful legacy in civil rights, law, and education.
These include her graduation, a mid-career photo signing a petition in 1947, and a portrait from the 1970s Black Women Oral History Project. The statue will be located at Thomas Paine Plaza and will be the city’s second statue of a Black woman, joining Harriet Tubman.
Creative Philadelphia Chief Valerie Gay highlighted Alexander as a “trailblazing civil rights activist” who, through pioneering achievements in law and economics, “paved the way for future generations.” The statue aims to commemorate her significant impact on Philadelphia and beyond. Alexander also contributed to the Selma to Montgomery march in 1965, presenting a replica of the Liberty Bell to Martin Luther King Jr.
A formal “Call for Artists” is set for November 18, encouraging applications from diverse backgrounds, particularly from local minority and women artists. Past criticism arose from a lack of public input in the selection for the Tubman statue, prompting Philadelphia to ensure transparency for this project.
Alexander’s accomplishments include her role as the first national president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and her activism against segregation alongside her husband, Judge Raymond Pace Alexander. She served on President Truman’s Committee on Civil Rights, which contributed to the desegregation of the U.S. military in 1948. Christopher R. Rogers of the Friends of the Tanner House emphasized the need to honor Alexander’s ideals, urging Philadelphians to consider her mission of “advancing justice and equity.”
Link: Inquirer
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