This is named for the three young men who perished on that tragic day, Feb. 8, 1968.
These three young men were shot to death by highway patrol officers when hundreds of SC State and Claflin students gathered around a bonfire. Two days prior the students protested a segregated bowling alley.
Killed, from right to left, were Henry E. Smith, 18, Samuel Hammond Jr. (both SC State students) and Delano Middleton, 17, a Wilkinson High School student.
The three bronze busts were sculpted by one of SC State's own: Dr. Toulupe Filani, chair of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts.
He is pictured here shaking the hand of school President Alexander Conyers. This was at last year's Feb. 8 commemoration when Filani's creations were unveiled.
Filani, who goes by Tolu, signed each bust that he crafted from clay. Curiously, he completed them in 2014. So why did it take eight years for them to be bronzed and displayed like this?
In an interview I conducted with Filani at last February's event, he admitted to having trouble getting the backing of SC State's leadership to fund the bronzing, which he says cost $30,000.
Fortunately, Filani didn't give up!
In this next soundbite, he modestly responds to my question about how pleased me must be that his creations are finally on public display.
In this third comment, Filani says how his vision of creating art for the SC State campus dates back to when he came here for his job interview back in 2006. Listen here.
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