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Philly to Honor First Black Woman to Graduate From U Penn’s Law School With Statue

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November 7, 2024

They’re holding a competition for interested artists!

Sadie T.M. Alexander was born in Philadelphia in 1898, Philly Voice reports. A trailblazer in civil rights, she became the first Black woman in the nation to earn a Ph.D. in economics when she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1921. But Alexander didn’t stop there. She went on to earn her law degree in 1927 and made history as the first Black woman to graduate from U Penn’s Law School.

Alexander came from a family of history makers, with her father previously becoming the first Black person to graduate from U Penn Law School 40 years prior. After earning her law degree, she joined her husband’s firm, where she practiced estate and family law. Throughout her career, she continued to open doors, becoming the first Black woman assistant city solicitor for the city of Philadelphia, a member of the Committee on Civil Rights for former President Harry Truman, the secretary for the National Bar Association, and a founding member of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. 

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Now, Alexander is being honored for her contributions to American history and the city of Philadelphia. Creative Philadelphia, the city’s art office, has just announced an open competition set to begin November 18th for artists interested in commissioning a statue in honor of Alexander. Artists must submit past work and answer questions about the project with priority to locals, women, and people of color. 

A selection committee, which includes Alexander’s daughters, NAACP Philadelphia reps, U Penn’s Black Law Student Association, the Philadelphia Bar Foundation, and the Sadie Collective nonprofit, will help determine the winner. Creative Philadelphia and Councilmember Jeffery Young are spearheading the efforts and will also help pick the design. On November 7th, the city will host a virtual public engagement session to get ideas from the community. 

This is the second public art contest in honor of a major civil rights leader. In 2022, the city previously commissioned a statue of Harriet Tubman. The statue of Alexander is expected to be placed at Thomas Paine Plaza in City Center, outside of the Municipal Services Building at 15th Street and John F Kennedy Boulevard. 

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Cover photo: Philly to Honor First Black Woman to Graduate From U Penn’s Law School With Statue/Photo credit: Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons/Philly Voice

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