PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Philadelphia Mural Arts has unveiled a new work dedicated to 19th century civil rights activist Octavius Catto, who was assassinated at age 32 while trying to rally people to vote in 1871.
The civil rights activist appears on the side of the Universal Institute Charter School in South Philadelphia, the neighborhood where he lived and died. Mural Arts says it worked for years to find a home for the mural.
The mural was dedicated in a Tuesday ceremony, and was attended by Democratic Mayor Jim Kenney and other city officials.
Alongside his activism, Catto served as headmaster of the nation’s first historically black university, now known as Cheyney University. He served in the U.S. National Guard as a Union Army major during the American Civil War.
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