Dedication marks a new chapter in OKC’s civil rights legacy

Thousands gathered in downtown Oklahoma City on Saturday, Nov. 1, at 11 a.m. at the intersection of North Robinson Avenue and West Main Street to dedicate the Clara Luper National Sit-In Plaza—a new landmark honoring Clara Luper and the original 13 students who sat down at a segregated lunch counter in 1958 at Katz Drug Store downtown.

The event marked one of the largest celebrations of the city’s civil rights history in recent years. Held at the former Katz Drug Store site, the dedication was described as a permanent tribute to the OKC youth and their teacher who ignited the nation’s sit-in movement.

The program featured live music and remarks from Marilyn Luper Hildreth—Luper’s daughter and one of the original sit-inners—along with Mayor David Holt and several surviving members of the 1958 protest. Additional speakers included committee members Rev. Dr. Lee Cooper Jr. and John Kennedy, as well as StudioEIS representative Elliot Schwartz.

Local choirs filled the plaza with songs of unity and remembrance throughout the event. Toward its close, the crowd joined the sit-inners in singing “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” “We Shall Overcome,” and “Everybody Wants Freedom.” Sit-inner and project committee member Joyce Henderson led the audience in “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” an anthem once sung by youth as they walked to participate in the sit-ins. Guests were then invited to explore the new plaza and even sit on an empty mahogany stool at the recreated lunch counter.

A bold beginning

On Aug. 19, 1958, Clara Luper—then a history teacher and adviser to the NAACP Youth Council in Oklahoma City—walked into Katz Drug Store with 13 young students and asked to be served at the lunch counter. The children, ranging from about 7 to 15, were refused service. They sat quietly for hours and returned over the following days until the store agreed to serve them—triggering a six-year campaign of nonviolent protest across the city.

That initial act of courage resulted in the desegregation of Katz Drug Stores within three days and inspired a wave of sit-ins across the country that propelled the Civil Rights Movement forward, advancing equal rights for all.

The OKC sit-in preceded the better-known 1960 Greensboro sit-in by more than a year, establishing OKC as one of the earliest and most influential battlegrounds in the fight for civil rights.

The plaza’s design and significance

The new plaza sits near the original site of the Katz Drug Store. Its centerpiece is a four-ton bronze reproduction of the lunch counter and stools, surrounded by 15 life-sized bronze figures: Clara Luper, the 13 students, and a Katz employee. The sculpture was created by the Brooklyn-based design firm StudioEIS.

StudioEIS, an internationally acclaimed sculpture and design studio, spent four years creating the installation, working directly with surviving sit-inners to ensure authenticity. A team of artists and craftspeople contributed to the effort: Oklahoma artist LaQuincey Reed helped sculpt Luper’s likeness, while celebrated sculptor Ed Dwight consulted on the design. The bronze pieces were cast at Artworks Foundry in Berkeley, California, using the centuries-old “lost wax” technique.

Leaders described the plaza as a permanent public memory of a moment when ordinary students and a teacher changed the course of local and national history.

“For so long, this moment in Oklahoma City has been overlooked in the history books, yet it helped change the nation,” said Luper Hildreth, who was only 10 years old when she sat at the Katz counter. “Seeing it honored in bronze, with such care and collaboration, would have meant the world to my mother. This sculpture ensures that future generations will remember that ordinary young people, acting together, can create extraordinary change.”

Elliot Schwartz, founder of StudioEIS, called the installation one of the most collaborative projects in the firm’s 50-year history. “The final work reflects the same spirit of unity that powered the sit-in movement,” he said.

Project developer John Kennedy added, “The plaza represents a true community effort to honor the birthplace of the sit-in movement here in Oklahoma City. We are proud to recognize the courage and vision of the original 13 sit-inners and their teacher, Ms. Luper. May we never forget that small actions can lead to big change.”

Ten of the original 13 sit-inners attended the dedication—one of the most significant gatherings of participants in the past decade. Others who took part in later demonstrations were also present, further highlighting the community’s deep connection to this legacy.

Looking ahead

The plaza is open to the public and free to visit. Its dedication signals a renewed focus on OKC’s role in the civil rights era and invites reflection on how far the city has come—and how far it still must go.

As visitors walk among the bronze figures, the Clara Luper National Sit-In Plaza stands not only as a commemoration of the past but as an enduring call to action—reminding everyone that courage, unity, and persistence can transform history.