WASHINGTON—Even though Hurricane Irene derailed this week’s formal dedication of the memorial to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the site has already become a place of pilgrimage. According to CNN, hundreds traveled there despite the storm.
“It’s a reflective place. It’s broad and it’s open and he’s right in the middle. He looks powerful without looking threatening. He looks powerful, but I feel like he’s on my side, on everybody’s side,” said Larry Matheson at the memorial.
The long anticipated site joined those for presidents Washington, Lincoln, and Jefferson on the National Mall in Washington. It is the only mall monument to a person who was not a president.
It was a long time coming. The statue was erected 43 years after the 1968 assassination of the civil rights leader. He was only 39 years old when he was killed in Memphis, Tenn. He had a wife and four young children.
The Aug. 28 dedication would have been on the 48th anniversary of King’s 1963 “I Have A Dream” speech. That was also the date in 2008 when Barack Obama accepted the Democratic Party nomination to run for president. He was planning to speak at the event.
Another act of nature caused disruptions to the memorial dedication week. A rare 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck Virginia and was felt up the East Coast as far away as New York.
The outdoor memorial to Dr. King took many years from idea to completion. Former President Bill Clinton signed legislation in 1996 proposing a memorial to Dr. King in Washington.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial was completed under the direction of the Washington, D.C., Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Project foundation, lead by CEO and President Harry E. Johnson Sr. Johnson led the foundation to raise 114 million of the 120 million dollars need for the project from both large corporate donors and from individuals.
“Dr. King, his life, his dream, and his legacy, will be a source of history and inspiration for all people, for all time,” said Johnson. He said in a press release that he was looking forward “to celebrating this momentous event with my fellow Americans and people around the world who understand what this memorial stands for, and the relevance of Dr. King’s message.”
The epic sculpture is a figurative mountain of despair, two huge pieces of rock through which one must walk to enter the memorial. Through the mountain of despair one is led into a plaza where Dr. King’s image stands carved out of the missing piece of the mountain, a granite stone of hope.
On the other side of the boulder are the words “I was a drum major for justice, peace, and righteousness, ” King’s own words to describe how he wished to be remembered.
The memorial also features a 450-foot crescent-shaped inscription wall engraved with 14 of his notable quotes. He is regarded as probably the greatest orator of the 20th century. He graduated from Morehouse College, famous for its public speaking curriculum.
For the memorial, 182 new Japanese cherry trees were planted near the Tidal Basin. Crape myrtle trees were also planted near the memorial. The memorial sits at the edge of the water.
“Dr. King did so much for humankind, seeing beyond gender or race, and worked tirelessly to provide us all with better lives and a more just environment. This memorial will honor his life, work, and commitment to human causes, and the memorial is fitting and proper of his character and legacy,” said Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas in a press release, after touring the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial site in February. Congresswoman Lee was involved in planning the memorial.
“I’m very proud of the memorial. But we are still a long way from the society he envisioned. Even with the election of Barack Obama this is still not a post racial society. It’s a society where race means everything,” said Korey Phipps, an architectural draftsman from northern Virginia, at the memorial.
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