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Cook: The time has come for the story of the five women who defeated the Klan

Staff Photo by Allison Kwesell/Chattanooga Times Free Press - A mural called "Allegory in Chattanooga" curves behind the judge's bench in the Joel W. Solomon Federal Building and United States Courthouse. The mural was installed in 1937 and it was painted by Hilton Leech
Staff Photo by Allison Kwesell/Chattanooga Times Free Press - A mural called "Allegory in Chattanooga" curves behind the judge's bench in the Joel W. Solomon Federal Building and United States Courthouse. The mural was installed in 1937 and it was painted by Hilton Leech Staff Photo by Allison Kwesell/Chattanooga Times Free Press - A mural called "Allegory in Chattanooga" curves behind the judge's bench in the Joel W. Solomon Federal Building and United States Courthouse. The mural was installed in 1937 and it was painted by Hilton Leech

By David Cook 5 min read

It is time we memorialize the five Chattanoogans – five African American women – shot in an act of domestic terrorism in 1980.

Our city has memorialized others: Confederate generals, police officers, veterans, Medal of Honor recipients, the Fallen Five.

Now, it is time we create a memorial for these black women: their bravery, their struggle, their victory over hate.

Viola Ellison.

Lela Evans.