Preserving Oklahoma’s Civil Rights Legacy. Building the Future of Civic Engagement.

Past

The Freedom Center of Oklahoma City connects history, education, and community through storytelling, exhibitions, civic dialogue, and cultural preservation. Through the historic Freedom Center and the the future Clara Luper Civil Rights Center, we honor the courage of the past while inspiring future generations to lead with purpose.

Present

Today, the Freedom Center serves as a gathering place for dialogue, education, exhibitions, community programming, and public engagement centered around equity, justice, and civic participation.

Future

The Clara Luper Civil Rights Center will expand this mission through immersive educational experiences, exhibitions, youth engagement, and national conversations about civil rights and democracy.

The Freedom Center of Oklahoma City connects history, education, and community through storytelling, exhibitions, civic dialogue, and cultural preservation.

Through the historic Freedom Center and the the future Clara Luper Civil Rights Center, we honor the courage of the past while inspiring future generations to lead with purpose.

LUPER LEGACY SITES

Freedom Center

The historic Freedom Center serves as a living archive of Oklahoma City’s civil rights movement and a gathering place for education, dialogue, and community preservation. In 2025, the Freedom Center re-opened to fulfill our current mission to educate, empower and enlighten our nation to reflect on the past, present and future of the Civil Rights Movement in Oklahoma.

2609 N. Martin Luther King Ave, Oklahoma City, OK 73111

Clara Luper Civil Rights Center

The Clara Luper Civil Rights Center (CLCRC) was created to commemorate the legacy of Clara Luper and highlight the role Oklahoma City played in the wider struggle for Civil Rights.

Through exhibits, programming, and thoughtful interpretive experiences we will tell the story of Oklahoma’s civil rights history to honor the past, enlighten visitors today, and empower the next generation of leadership.

Sit-In Plaza

“Clara Luper is a seminal figure in our city’s history and the sit-in movement she led changed Oklahoma City forever. It is a necessity that we appropriately and visibly honor that history in the heart of our city, so that this inspiring story impacts future generations.” -Mayor David Holt

The Clara Luper National Sit-In Plaza is located in the historically significant former location of Katz Drug Store at W. Main Street at N. Robinson Ave in Downtown, Oklahoma City. Operated by our partner, Communities Foundation of Oklahoma, Inc., The monument features fifteen life-sized bronze sculptures that convey the powerful story of the 1958 sit-in led by Clara Luper and the thirteen original “sit-inners”.

59 N. Robinson Ave, Oklahoma City, OK 731021

Inside These Walls

The History of the Freedom Center

Inspired by the Freedom Center’s unique 40+ year history as home to Oklahoma City’s NAACP Youth Council, this immersive experience showcases photographs, original artifacts, and digital interactives. Discover the youth, community members, and everyday leaders whose courage transformed the Freedom Center from a building into a powerhouse for change, hope, and generational impact.

PUBLIC PROGRAMS

Learn. Do. Engage.

The Freedom Center hosts programs throughout the year that bring together educators, historians, students, artists, activists, and community leaders to explore the ongoing impact of civil rights history on contemporary life.

NEWS & MEDIA

Latest News & Updates

Freedom Center unveils restoration with ‘Inside These Walls’ exhibition

OKLAHOMA CITY – Guests were packed shoulder-to-shoulder Friday inside the entrance of Eastside OKC’s historic Freedom Center as project directors and community leaders celebrated the space’s recent restoration by kicking off its inaugural multimedia/archival memorabilia exhibition “Inside These Walls.”

Groundbreaking of new MAPS 4 Clara Luper Civil Rights Center

Download rendering (link) – Credit: Clara Luper Civil Rights Center designed by Atelier Cory Henry.

Clara Luper Civil Rights Center breaks ground in Oklahoma City

The Clara Luper Civil Rights Center, a $17 million project honoring Oklahoma City’s civil rights history, broke ground Wednesday near the historic Freedom Center.

Years Of History

Artifacts Preserved

Lives Impacted Through Programs

SUPPORT THE MISSION

Built by Community.
Sustained by Community.

The Freedom Center exists because generations of people believed in the possibility of creating a more just world.

From community members who gave nickels and dimes to modern-day supporters investing in educational access and cultural preservation, every contribution helps sustain this work for future generations.

Your support helps