Arkansas lawmakers have decided to replace the statues representing the state at the U.S. Capitol with more recognizable figures. The existing sculptures, obscure historical figures from the 18th and 19th centuries, are being replaced by civil rights leader Daisy Bates and musician Johnny Cash.
Daisy Bates, a prominent civil rights figure in Arkansas, played a crucial role in the fight over school desegregation. She mentored the Little Rock Nine, the Black students who integrated Central High School in 1957. Bates' statue, created by sculptor Benjamin Victor, depicts her walking with a newspaper in her arm, holding a notebook and pen, and wearing a NAACP pin and rose on her lapel.
