"The Fist"

Monument to Joe Louis

At Woodward Avenue and Jefferson

Detroit, MI

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monument_to_Joe_Louis

Most cities around the world have statues of various founding fathers, dignitaries or war heroes.  Detroit has those type of memorials also.  What Detroit has that no other city has that I am aware of is a monument of a man's arm and fist.  It is not just anyone's arm and fist, it represents Joe Louis', Boxing's longest running Heavyweight Champion from 1937 to 1949.  

Although not born in Detroit, Joe Louis moved with his family to Detroit when he was 12 in 1926 during the Great Migration from the South.  He made his amateur boxing debut at age 17 and his record as an amateur was 50-4 with 43 knockouts.

Joe Louis turned pro and compiled a 69-3 record with 57 knockouts over his career.  The two major bouts of his career was against Max Schmeling during the late '30's.  At the time, Schmeling represented Nazi Germany while Louis represented the U.S.  The two bouts took place just prior to WWII in 1936 & 1938 and had social/political implications between the two nations.  Schmeling won the first bout and Louis the second after only 2 minutes and 40 seconds of the first round.  This second win presented a major propaganda victory for the United States and African Americans at the time. Without going into additional detail in this post, one can review Joe Louis' life and career at  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Louis .

The monument was erected back in 1986 and was commissioned by Sports Illustrated magazine.  Besides paying homage to Joe Louis, the 8,000 lb., 26 foot long sculpture, over the years, has also been a symbol of Detroit's pride and defiance.

The statue is best viewed early in the morning on weekends as both Jefferson and Woodward are the two major streets in Detroit and are quite busy during the week.  As an example, the photo above was taken around 10:00 AM on a Sunday morning.  Also, viewing during the weekend mornings allows one to park close by and walk to the statue.  Although not a major attraction in Detroit, it is still an interesting art form worth seeing.