The Virginia Civil Rights Memorial is a monument in Richmond, Virginia, commemorating protests which helped bring about school desegregation in the state.[1] The memorial was opened in July 2008, and is located on the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol. It features eighteen statues of leaders or participants in the Civil Rights Movement on four sides of a rectangular granite stone block onto which are carved quotes.[2] The memorial was designed by Stanley Bleifeld, who was chosen by the commission behind the construction of the monument.[3] The memorial cost $2.8 million which was financed by private donations.[2]
Plaque describing the movement for integration of Virginia schools.
R. R. Moton High School, an all-black high school in Farmville, Virginia, founded in 1923, suffered from terrible conditions due to underfunding. The school did not have a gymnasium, cafeteria or teachers' restrooms. Teachers and students did not have desks or blackboards, and due to overcrowding, some students had to take classes in an immobilized, decrepit school bus parked outside the main school building. The school's requests for additional funds were denied by the all-white school board.[1]
In response, on April 23, 1951, a 16-year-old student named Barbara Rose Johns covertly organized a student general strike. She forged notes to teachers telling them to bring their students to the auditorium for a special announcement. When the school's students showed up, Johns took the stage and persuaded the school to strike to protest poor school conditions. Over 450 walked out and marched to the homes of members of the school board, who refused to see them. Thus began a two-week protest.[4]
Governor of VirginiaMark Warner and the Virginia General Assembly established on February 24, 2005, the commission to oversee the monument.[6] Ground was broken on the site of the monument on February 19, 2008. The memorial is located on a corner opposite a Statue of Harry F. Byrd, the architect of the massive resistance movement against civil rights.[7] The monument was on temporary display in Newburgh, New York before being installed in July 2008. The ceremony opening the memorial was held on July 21, 2008, and was attended by about 4,000, including Governor Tim Kaine, relatives of those involved in the protest, and civil rights leaders.[2] Stanley Bleifeld, who was the sculptor of the monument, said that because of the continuing nature of the Civil Rights Movement, he "wanted to make a living memorial, not a statue so that people engage and understand what's behind it."[8]
Statuesedit
Eighteen statues are positioned around the monument. Not every statue depicts a specific person, with statues representing both students and adults. Among those depicted include:
"The legal system can force open doors and sometimes even knock down walls, but it cannot build bridges. That job belongs to you and me." — Thurgood Marshall[9]
^ abc. Archived from the original on March 1, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
^ abcSluss, Michael (July 22, 2008). "'Living memorial' unveiled at state capitol". The Roanoke Times. Retrieved September 30, 2008.
^. Virginia Civil Rights Memorial. 2007. Archived from the original on August 2, 2008. Retrieved September 30, 2008.
^"Farmville, Virginia — Separate is Not Equal". Separate is Not Equal Brown v. Board of Education. Smithsonian National Museum of American History Behring Center. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
^. Hampden Sydney College News & Events. Hampden Sydney College. Archived from the original on August 27, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2007.
^"House Joint Resolution No. 790". Virginia General Assembly. December 1, 2005. Retrieved September 30, 2008.
^Sluss, Michael (February 20, 2008). "Kaine helps break ground for civil rights memorial". The Roanoke Times. Retrieved September 30, 2008.
^"Courage enshrined". The Free Lance Star. July 27, 2008. Retrieved September 30, 2008.
External linksedit
Media related to Virginia Civil Rights Memorial at Wikimedia Commons
Memorial homepage
Smithsonian Art Institute Catalog
January 01, 1970
virginia, civil, rights, memorial, monument, richmond, virginia, commemorating, protests, which, helped, bring, about, school, desegregation, state, memorial, opened, july, 2008, located, grounds, virginia, state, capitol, features, eighteen, statues, leaders,. The Virginia Civil Rights Memorial is a monument in Richmond Virginia commemorating protests which helped bring about school desegregation in the state 1 The memorial was opened in July 2008 and is located on the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol It features eighteen statues of leaders or participants in the Civil Rights Movement on four sides of a rectangular granite stone block onto which are carved quotes 2 The memorial was designed by Stanley Bleifeld who was chosen by the commission behind the construction of the monument 3 The memorial cost 2 8 million which was financed by private donations 2 East side of the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial West side of the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial North side of the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial South side of the Virginia Civil Rights MemorialVirginia Civil Rights Memorial37 32 19 7 N 77 26 1 W 37 538806 N 77 43361 W 37 538806 77 43361LocationVirginia State Capitol Contents 1 Background 2 Construction 3 Statues 4 Quotes 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksBackground edit nbsp Plaque describing the movement for integration of Virginia schools R R Moton High School an all black high school in Farmville Virginia founded in 1923 suffered from terrible conditions due to underfunding The school did not have a gymnasium cafeteria or teachers restrooms Teachers and students did not have desks or blackboards and due to overcrowding some students had to take classes in an immobilized decrepit school bus parked outside the main school building The school s requests for additional funds were denied by the all white school board 1 In response on April 23 1951 a 16 year old student named Barbara Rose Johns covertly organized a student general strike She forged notes to teachers telling them to bring their students to the auditorium for a special announcement When the school s students showed up Johns took the stage and persuaded the school to strike to protest poor school conditions Over 450 walked out and marched to the homes of members of the school board who refused to see them Thus began a two week protest 4 The protest led to a court case where Virginia civil rights lawyers Oliver Hill and Spottswood Robinson brought suit against the school board Davis v County School Board of Prince Edward County was eventually one of the four cases combined into Brown v Board of Education the famous case in which the U S Supreme Court in 1954 officially overturned racial segregation in U S public schools 1 However the policies of Massive Resistance delayed integration until the 1960s when national legislation was passed 5 Construction editGovernor of Virginia Mark Warner and the Virginia General Assembly established on February 24 2005 the commission to oversee the monument 6 Ground was broken on the site of the monument on February 19 2008 The memorial is located on a corner opposite a Statue of Harry F Byrd the architect of the massive resistance movement against civil rights 7 The monument was on temporary display in Newburgh New York before being installed in July 2008 The ceremony opening the memorial was held on July 21 2008 and was attended by about 4 000 including Governor Tim Kaine relatives of those involved in the protest and civil rights leaders 2 Stanley Bleifeld who was the sculptor of the monument said that because of the continuing nature of the Civil Rights Movement he wanted to make a living memorial not a statue so that people engage and understand what s behind it 8 Statues editEighteen statues are positioned around the monument Not every statue depicts a specific person with statues representing both students and adults Among those depicted include Barbara Rose Johns Spottswood William Robinson III Oliver Hill Leslie Francis GriffinQuotes editTwo quotes are engraved on the granite on each of the long sides of the monument It seemed like reaching for the moon Barbara Rose Johns The legal system can force open doors and sometimes even knock down walls but it cannot build bridges That job belongs to you and me Thurgood Marshall 9 See also editCivil rights movement in popular cultureReferences edit a b c The History of Jim Crow Archived from the original on March 1 2007 Retrieved March 13 2007 a b c Sluss Michael July 22 2008 Living memorial unveiled at state capitol The Roanoke Times Retrieved September 30 2008 Artist Stanley Bleifeld Virginia Civil Rights Memorial 2007 Archived from the original on August 2 2008 Retrieved September 30 2008 Farmville Virginia Separate is Not Equal Separate is Not Equal Brown v Board of Education Smithsonian National Museum of American History Behring Center Retrieved March 13 2007 Remembering Barbara Johns Hampden Sydney College News amp Events Hampden Sydney College Archived from the original on August 27 2007 Retrieved March 13 2007 House Joint Resolution No 790 Virginia General Assembly December 1 2005 Retrieved September 30 2008 Sluss Michael February 20 2008 Kaine helps break ground for civil rights memorial The Roanoke Times Retrieved September 30 2008 Waugh Dionne July 22 2008 Remembering Barbara s Stand Richmond Times Dispatch Retrieved September 30 2008 Courage enshrined The Free Lance Star July 27 2008 Retrieved September 30 2008 External links edit nbsp Media related to Virginia Civil Rights Memorial at Wikimedia Commons Memorial homepage Smithsonian Art Institute Catalog Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Virginia Civil Rights Memorial amp oldid 1139556974, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
