Akin’s Katie Brossy Leads Firm’s Pro Bono Push to Place Willa Cather Statue in US Capitol

(Washington, D.C.) – Akin is proud to share that a pro bono engagement led by Katie Brossy, senior counsel in the firm’s lobbying & public policy group, has secured the installation of a bronze sculpture honoring renowned writer Willa Cather in Statuary Hall in the United States Capitol. The statue, created by Littleton Alston, the first African American sculptor to have his work showcased in the Statuary Hall Collection, will be unveiled and dedicated in a ceremony on June 7. The firm represented the Willa Cather National Statuary Hall Selection Committee in this effort.

This is the second statue that Katie and the firm have succeeded in placing in the Statuary Hall Collection on behalf of the state of Nebraska. Each state is allowed to select two statues for permanent display in the Capitol. In 2018, Nebraska’s governor signed into law a bill to replace the two previous statues, which had been installed in 1937. In fall 2019, the first, of these, a bronze sculpture honoring Ponca Chief and civil rights leader Standing Bear, was unveiled. In both cases, Katie, a member of the Ponca Tribe, and the firm navigated a rigorous process to replace the extant statues.

Don Pongrace, leader of the firm’s American Indian law & policy group, said, “Our firm has a longstanding tradition of giving back, and we have been privileged to have the opportunity to do so while honoring the institution of Congress where much of our work is done. I know this is the kind of project that Mr. Strauss envisioned when he built this practice so many years ago, and I know he would be justifiably proud of Katie’s hard work and accomplishment. Katie led a team that truly exemplifies the skills and knowledge that allow us to help all our clients, pro bono and fee-paying alike, achieve their goals.”

Katie added, “As a native Nebraskan, I am beyond proud to have been able to lead our pro bono effort on behalf of my state. Both Chief Standing Bear and Willa Cather, through their lives and work, capture essential elements of our spirit and history. Being part of the effort to see these icons represent Nebraska in the United States Capitol is one of the highlights of my career so far.”

The Willa Cather dedication will be live-streamed by the House Recording Studio at https://www.speaker.gov/live/.

Akin is a leading international law firm with more than 900 lawyers and advisors in offices throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

###