Civil Rights Sit-In Monument to Be Unveiled November 1

A small downtown plaza at the intersection of W. Main and Robinson Ave. was once the site of Katz Drugstore, where the NCAA Youth Council, with the guidance of civil rights leader Clara Luper, staged the 1958 sit-in to force racial integration in Oklahoma City. The plaza is now the new home to a life-size and highly detailed depiction of the sit-in scene, slated to be publicly unveiled this Saturday. The newly named ‘Clara Luper Sit-In Plaza‘ is centered around a $3.6 million bronze monument by sculptor LaQuincey Reed to honor the courage that reshaped Oklahoma City and inspired a nation. Years in the making and championed by the Clara Luper Legacy Committee and Mayor David Holt, the memorial sits just north of the former Katz Drugstore site on a vacated section of Main Street, converted into a pedestrian plaza once owned by the Oklahoma City Urban Re-development Authority (OCURA). The sculpture portrays the 13 young people who joined Luper, the lunch counter where they demanded service, and the waitress who turned them away. Their persistence sparked the integration of Katz and, soon after, many other establishments across Oklahoma City. The scene, depicted in the exact location where the 1958 event took place, leaves a powerful presence with a heavy meaning to the city. Viewers can stand on this historic site during the unveiling ceremony this Saturday, November 1st at 11:00 a.m.