Samuel L. Evans, portrait sculpture

Samuel London Evans (1902–2008) Portrait bronze, sculpted from life, by Zenos Frudakis.

⭐America 250 —Samuel L. Evans, AFNA, and the Symphony of Social Change
Samuel London Evans was a legendary political power broker in Philadelphia. Despite never holding elected office, he exerted immense influence over city leaders for decades and was a pivotal figure in the American Civil Rights Movement. He served as a bridge between the Black community and the political establishment, advising leaders from local mayors to U.S. presidents.

Born in Florida just 37 years after slavery ended, Evans had witnessed five lynchings by the age of nine. In 1919, at seventeen, he left Florida by working as a deckhand on a freighter that sailed from Tampa to New York, and from New York he moved to live in Philadelphia with his brother.

Evans’ first job was with the Stark Piano Company, where he discovered classical music. Years later, he would become the first Black manager in the United States to produce symphony orchestra concerts. He was the first Black impresario to gain admittance to the International Society of Impresarios. He served as the manager of the Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra and produced symphony concerts at the Academy of Music for over 35 years.

In the 1930s, Evans was jailed for picketing stores that refused to hire Black workers and for protesting Nazi activity on American soil. He popularized the slogan, “Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work.” A dedicated human rights advocate, in 1963 he organized Philadelphia's 43,000-member contingent for the historic March on Washington led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

He advised mayors and presidents, and he was appointed to the U.S. Physical Fitness Commission by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Evans also led anti-poverty initiatives under Lyndon B. Johnson. He built bridges between the Black community and the political establishment—and then encouraged people to cross them.

In 1968, Evans founded the American Foundation for Negro Affairs (AFNA), which has since provided scholarships to more than 20,000 African American students pursuing professional careers in medicine, law, and other disciplines.

Evans died in 2008 at 105 years old. Philadelphia honored him as the first person to lie in state at City Hall, where hundreds came to pay their respects. His extensive papers and photographs are preserved in the Temple University Archives.

Portrait Sculpture
Size: Life size, sculpted from life
Media: Bronze
Created: 1984
Location / Collection:
American Foundation for Negro Affairs (AFNA)
117 S. 17th St.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania