Daniel Mears / The Detroit News
|
Labor cheers unveiling of riverfront monument
Arch in Hart Plaza will depict legacy of union movement
|
Comment on this story
DETROIT -- Mayor Dennis Archer joined hands with
union members and sang the UAW hymm Solidarity Forever after unveiling
a model of the labor monument that will be built near Hart Plaza.
"I think the landmark opportunity for this public art is just tremendous,"
Archer said. "It will focus all our attention on the contribution that labor
has made."
The monument, a six-story stainless steel arch that will rise from a grove
of trees, will be built outside the UAW/Ford National Programs Center in
downtown, formerly the Veterans Memorial Building. Groundbreaking is expected
by next Labor Day.
Funds for the Michigan Labor Legacy Project are being raised through
Detroit-area United Auto Workers and other AFL-CIO-affiliated unions. No
corporate or public funds will be used for the $980,000 project. The Legacy
Project said about $700,000 from unions and individuals already has been
pledged.
Called Transcending, the sculpture was designed by artists David
Barr of Novi and Sergio De Giusti of Redford Township. The arch will carry
quotations about working people from people as diverse as Abraham Lincoln and
early 20th century labor leader Mother Jones.
The labor legacy project began about five years ago as a tricentennial art
work. It is an official Detroit 300 Heritage project.
U.S. Rep. David Bonoir of Mt. Clemens, who has the backing of both the UAW
and Michigan AFL-CIO in his battle for the Democratic nomination for governor,
said the monument represents working men and women.
"It's a monument to the sacrifice that people were prepared to make for us,"
Bonoir said.
You can reach Christopher M. Singer at (313) 222-2127 or
csinger@detnews.com.