$1.24M raised for Coleman Young statue at U.S. Capitol

Max Reinhart, The Detroit News on Oct 20, 2026

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The group working to bring a statue of former Detroit Mayor Coleman A. Young to the U.S. Capitol unveiled a working model of the statue Tuesday, Oct. 20, and announced that a "companion statue" will be erected in the city.

During an Oct. 20 ceremony at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit-based sculptor Austen Brantley said he opted to depict Young in "a strong, grounded stance with his arms crossed, a posture that communicates confidence, conviction and self-assurance."

So far, the Coleman A. Young Statue Initiative has raised more than $1.24 million to create the monument, officials announced Tuesday. Officials with the project said they expect the statue will be erected in Washington sometime in late 2027 or early 2028.

The U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall Collection comprises 100 statues donated by the 50 states, with each state contributing two statues honoring notable figures from its history and their contributions to the nation.

In 2022, the state Legislature approved a plan to replace the Michigan's statue of Lewis Cass in the Capitol's Statuary Hall Collection with one of Young. Michigan’s other honoree in the Statuary Hall Collection is former U.S. President Gerald R. Ford.

The measure sought to honor Young, a World War II Tuskegee Airman who became a leading civil rights advocate and Detroit's first Black mayor, instead of Cass, whose role in enforcing the Indian Removal Act helped drive Native Americans from their homelands.

Second statue announced

Bedrock, which has been a key financial contributor to the project, is commissioning a second statue, which will be located on the city's riverfront, in the recently announced $1 billion redeveloped Renaissance Center civic space.

"I think Mayor Young stood for the fundamental idea that you cannot have Black empowerment, you cannot uplift the human condition without economic progress," said Bedrock CEO Jared Fleisher.

Each of the six mayors who have served after Young's time in office were present at Tuesday's ceremony: Dennis Archer, Kwame Kilpatrick, Kenneth Cockrel Jr., Dave Bing, Mike Duggan and current Mayor Mary Sheffield.

"I know that I would not be standing here today had it not been for Mayor Coleman A. Young," said Sheffield, who is Detroit's first woman mayor. "I am proud to stand on his shoulders and I am proud to support this campaign to honor him in the National Statutory Hall Collection of the United States Capitol."

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer shared her support via a prerecorded video message.

"From his service as a Tuskegee Airman to his years leading the city, he made history and he helped shape Detroit and our state for generations to come," Whitmer said.

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