After much delay, construction has finally begun on the Washington, D.C., Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial.
The work began in mid-December 2009 and should last about 18 months, if it stays on track, said Harry Johnson Sr., president of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation Inc.
The nonprofit agency is overseeing the project.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar issued a building permit to the foundation Oct. 29, 2009, about a year after it applied.
Because the permit was not issued under the George W. Bush Administration, it paved the way for Barack Obama, the first African American president, to dedicate the first national memorial to King, said Johnson.
"The significance of all of this is Dr. King gave his 'I Have a Dream Speech' August 28 in D.C. during the March on Washington," Johnson said. "Barack Obama gets the nomination for the Democratic nominee August 28, 2008. This memorial will be completed July 2011 ... How significant would it be for us to have now a dedication that happens August 28 on the anniversary of the March on Washington," Johnson said.
The point of delay that passed the final issuance of a building permit to the Obama Administration was the foundation's efforts to satisfy the National Park Service's requirements for a specific type of security around the 4-acre memorial to help thwart domestic terrorist attacks, and then get two other federal regulatory agencies to agree, he added.
"The park service felt that while Dr. King's memorial would not be a target for international terrorists, it could very well be a target for domestic terrorists, so they wanted to make sure that the people of United States and visitors to the memorial were protected; so we came up with a different design to stop truck bombs and things like that from damaging the memorial," he said.
So far, the nonprofit has raised about $106 million of the project's total cost of $120 million, and it does not foresee any difficulties raising the remainder for the memorial, which will be on the National Mall and include a 28-foot statue of King, who was assassinated in 1968.
Million-dollar donations have poured in from corporations, individuals with high-dollar net worth, and foundations — as well as the grandmothers, grandfathers, and people who went through the Civil Rights Movement. Many children sent in $5 and $10, Johnson said.
Further, he said, despite the recession, fundraising efforts have been fruitful, and during January and Black History Month, donations usually increase because people look for causes to give to during that time.
"The torch bearer after Dr. King's death was his wife, Coretta Scott King, and certainly his family," he said. "This tribute to Dr. King is as much a tribute and a statement of admiration for Coretta Scott King and now her living children and those who have passed on," said Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX).
Charlene Muhammad is a writer for the L.A. Watts Times.
Photo courtesy of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation.
Read more stories from the L.A. Watts Times »
Leave a comment