On December 16, 2025, history echoed through the halls of the U.S. Capitol as the statue of Barbara Rose Johns—a teenage civil rights icon—was unveiled in a ceremony both solemn and celebratory. This new statue, now representing Virginia in the National Statuary Hall Collection, replaces that of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, whose likeness stood for 111 years before being removed in 2020. The significance of this change resonated deeply with attendees and observers alike, marking a notable shift in how the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the nation at large, chooses to honor its past and inspire its future.
Emancipation Hall was filled with anticipation and pride as more than 200 members of Barbara Johns’ family gathered alongside political leaders, community representatives, and the Eastern Senior High School choir, whose renditions of “How Great Thou Art,” “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’Round,” and “Total Praise” set the tone for the event. Among those present were Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Republican Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, Democratic Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger, and Virginia’s congressional delegation, as reported by NBC Washington and WSET.
Speaker Johnson opened the ceremony with a powerful tribute, saying, “We are here to honor one of America’s true trailblazers, a woman who embodied the essence of the American spirit in her fight for liberty and justice and equal treatment under the law, the indomitable Barbara Rose Johns.” His words captured the mood of the day—a celebration of courage, perseverance, and the enduring quest for justice.
Barbara Rose Johns’ story is one of youthful audacity and transformative impact. In 1951, at just 16 years old, she led a two-week student strike at R.R. Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia, protesting the substandard conditions endured by Black students in the segregated school system. Her leadership galvanized her peers and drew the attention of NAACP lawyers, who filed a lawsuit that would become one of the five cases consolidated in the landmark 1954 Supreme Court decision, Brown v. Board of Education. That ruling declared “separate but equal” public schools unconstitutional, forever altering the landscape of American education.
Johns’ legacy extends far beyond that pivotal moment. After her activism, she married Rev. William Powell, raised five children, and worked as a librarian in the Philadelphia Public Schools. She passed away in 1991 at the age of 56, but her influence continues to ripple through generations. As her daughter Terry Harrison recalled during the ceremony, “She put God first in her life. She was brave, bold, determined, strong, wise, unselfish, warm and loving.”
The newly unveiled statue, sculpted by Steven Weitzman of Maryland, captures the spirit of Johns’ activism. It depicts her standing beside a lectern, holding a tattered book above her head—a symbol of the fight for educational equality. The pedestal bears the words, “Are we going to just accept these conditions, or are we going to do something about it?” along with a quote from the Book of Isaiah: “And a little child shall lead them.” According to WSET, the statue’s installation was recommended by Virginia’s Commission for Historical Statues and received final approval from the Architect of the Capitol and the Joint Committee on the Library in July 2025.
The ceremony was not only a commemoration but also a moment of reflection on the progress made and the work still to be done. Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries did not mince words when he remarked, “The Commonwealth of Virginia will now be properly represented by an actual patriot who embodied the principle of liberty and justice for all, and not a traitor who took up arms against the United States to preserve the brutal institution of chattel slavery.” His statement underscored the symbolic weight of replacing Lee’s statue with that of Johns—a shift from honoring the Confederacy to celebrating the struggle for civil rights.
Dr. Michael Hickman, president of the Calfee Community & Cultural Center’s Board of Directors and a guest at the ceremony, shared a personal perspective on the significance of Johns’ legacy. “For her to take this upon herself to organize, to stand up and speak out, this is as American as it gets,” Dr. Hickman told WSET. He reflected on his own experiences with segregation and integration in Virginia’s schools, noting, “High school segregation, I lived through that. I went to a black elementary school, the Calfee Training School... The last three years of my public school, I got to attend an integrated high school, and that was due to her actions.”
Senator Mark Warner added, “Barbara Rose Johns is a historic figure in Virginia and U.S. history. Her leadership during the civil rights movement was featured in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case that would overturn racial segregation and usher in a new era of social change in the United States.” Senator Tim Kaine echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that the Bible verse on the statue’s pedestal “reminds him of Johns’ bravery and leadership.”
The process leading to the statue’s unveiling reflects broader societal changes. The removal of the Lee statue in December 2020 came amid a national reckoning over Confederate monuments following the death of George Floyd. Former Democratic Virginia Governor Ralph Northam had requested the removal, and a state commission recommended Johns as the replacement. The Lee statue was relocated to the Virginia Museum of History & Culture. Now, alongside George Washington, Barbara Rose Johns stands as one of Virginia’s two representatives in the National Statuary Hall Collection—a shift that, as Speaker Johnson noted, “will inspire millions of visitors to the U.S. Capitol, including many young people.”
The statue’s placement in the Crypt of the Capitol ensures that Johns’ story will be seen by countless visitors, prompting reflection on the ongoing pursuit of equality. As her sister, Joan Johns Cobbs, read from one of Barbara’s journal entries during the ceremony: “And then there were times I just prayed, ‘God, please grant us a new school, please let us have a warm place to stay where we won’t have to keep our coats on all day to stay warm. God, please help us. We are your children too.’”
Johns’ legacy is also commemorated at the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial outside the state Capitol in Richmond, and the former R.R. Moton High School is now a National Historic Landmark and museum. Governor Youngkin described the site as “an incredibly profound moment, a moment to stand in a tar shack classroom with a hot potbelly stove as a heater, tar paper walls, shabby desks, right where 16-year-old Barbara Rose Johns courageously organized her schoolmates and stood up to the lie—the lie was separate but equal.”
As the Capitol’s newest statue takes its place, the story of Barbara Rose Johns continues to inspire. Her courage as a teenager helped spark a movement that changed the nation, and her likeness now stands as a testament to the enduring power of youth, faith, and the pursuit of justice. For visitors walking through the halls of Congress, her presence offers a reminder: sometimes, it takes a child to lead the way.
