PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia icon Marian Anderson will get a statue in her hometown.
A private non-profit, established just for that purpose, announced the statue will go on the steps of the Academy of Music.
Marian Anderson would have been proud to see the African-American classical singers on the steps of the Academy of Music, and not just because they were paying tribute to her.
Anderson broke barriers for Black vocalists.
Mayor Jim Kenney said her statue will also break barriers.
"The Marian Anderson statue will be the first free-standing statue depicting a historic Black female figure in Philadelphia’s history," said Kenney.
It’s a milestone for the city, but opera singer Denyce Graves noted that this is not just a Philadelphia story.
"Miss Anderson impacts American history, the classical vocal arts and Philadelphia for sure, but this is a story of America and the world," Graves said.
Anderson’s stunning contralto voice made her an international celebrity. She became a force for equal rights in 1939 when she gave a public concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being barred from singing in Constitution Hall because of her race.
Marian Anderson's historic performance at the Lincoln Memorial, after being banned from performing at Constitution Hall. | U.S. National Archives
The statue effort is in the early stages, but the task force that is raising funds for it hopes to announce the artist and design by next February, the 125th anniversary of Anderson’s birth in South Philadelphia.
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