Statue of John Lewis unveiled in Georgia to honor late civil rights leader

Statue of congressman, who died in 2020 of cancer, replaces obelisk erected in 1908 celebrating the Confederacy

A 12ft-tall statue of John Lewis was unveiled in Georgia on Saturday morning, honoring the legacy of the civil rights leader and congressman who died in 2020.

The statue stands in Decatur Square outside the historic Decatur courthouse in outer Atlanta, in a district Lewis represented in Congress from 1987 to his death. Lewis was 80 when he died due to complications related to pancreatic cancer.