A cultural statement

From the very beginning, we wanted to do something special. We wanted to find a way to bring awareness, in a very distinct manner, to the role of the law during one of the nation’s most important eras - the civil rights movement.

That was the thought our founder and managing director, Derrick Alexander Pope had, and that is the thought that became the seed for The Arc of Justice Foundation.

ON THE COURTHOUSE STEPS

A select array of landmark cases in a particular legal area etched on ascending courthouse steps.

A MORE PERFECT UNION

An interactive, first-instance learning opportunity portraying a disassembled American being reassembled by the efforts of notable legal figures using the Constitution.

Under the Color of Law, Freedom Suits, On the Courthouse Steps, and A More Perfect Union: A Cultural Exhibit and exhibit descriptions are the intellectual property of The Arc of Justice Foundation.

FREEDOM SUITS

An exhibit chronicling the array of lawsuits conducted from 1656 - 1857 seeking and gaining the emancipation of black Americans.

Our early efforts were halted by the pandemic, but we never lost passion for creating a lasting monument to the heroic and vital contribution that lawyers and judges made then.

Under the Color of Law gets its name from a provision of the first ever civil rights act in 1866. The exhibit will be presented in four principal themes that highlight the role of law from the colonial period through the modern era. In early to mid-2025, the Foundation Content Council will develop a “call to entry” for select artists to develop the exhibit. The selected artists, the chosen medium, and other related information will be released later that year. The exhibits are expected to be ready for the first stop of their travelling tour at the inaugural Arc of Justice Ideas Ex+Change Symposium in 2026.

Check back for periodic updates