Dedicated in 1986, The Monument to Joe Lewis, a twenty four foot sculpture of an arm and fist, is situated next to Hart Plaza, near the Detroit River, at the intersection of Jefferson and Woodward. The monument commemorates Detroit boxer Joe Lewis defeating Max Schmeling in 1938. Schmeling, from Hitler’s nazi Germany, lost to a Black American. The emotional victory for America, and symbolic defeat for Germany, came at a crucial time in world history.