Overview

• City officials, family members, and Tuskegee Airmen representatives held a rededication Friday at Jefferson Plaza near Joy Road and Spinoza Drive.
• The statue was taken from Rouge Park on Oct. 23, 2024, and Detroit Police recovered it about 24 hours later.
• Police said the motive was the bronze’s scrap value, and one person was charged and pleaded guilty.
• The ceremony honored Lt. Col. Alexander Jefferson’s service, noting he was shot down over France in 1944, held as a POW, and segregated upon returning to the U.S.
• The event reflected urgency around legacy preservation as original Tuskegee Airmen grow fewer, including the recent death of Col. George Hardy.