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Charles Dharapak / AP
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is seen Monday, Aug. 22, 2011 in Washington, ahead of its dedication on Aug. 28.
Public art can be difficult. Artists and funding organizations are never going to please everyone. I remember the controversy when the Vietnam Memorial was built. Opponents blasted the design as “a black gash of shame.” Many veterans voiced displeasure.
However, time has shown how powerful Maya Ying Lin’s design was. The Vietnam Memorial receives over 3 million visitors each year and has become something of national shrine.
Controversy also accompanied the MLK Memorial unveiling today in Washington D.C. Critics are upset that the work of a Chinese artist was chosen. They say MLK’s 30-foot likeness is too confrontational and appears too Asian.
MLK’s son, Martin Luther King III, told USA TODAY that he likes the statue."I've seen probably 50 sculptures of my dad, and I would say 47 of them are not good reflections — that's not to disparage an artist," King said. "This particular artist — he's done a good job."
The memorial is scheduled for dedication on Aug. 28 which will coincide with the anniversary of MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
Jacquelyn Martin / AP
The statue of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is unveiled during the soft opening of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington.
A memorial dedicated to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. opened to the public Monday in Washington, D.C. Reverend Jesse Jackson, who knew and worked with King in the civil rights movement, discusses the memorial with msnbc's Thomas Roberts and says King still has "unfinished business."
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It's so nice to be able to remember a time when at least some of the nation was united. We are in shreds....I went to the march and wrote this song last year:
Gerry Segal Singer/Songwriter
www.gerrysegal.com
Remembering the civil rights era with some nostalgia is understandable. But I don't know what would make you recall it as a time when "at least some of the nation was united. We are in shreds" as though the struggles of the 1960s were the good old days and that things are really bad now.
We have a long way to go, no question about it. But to recast our current era as divisive in contrast to that time is, at best, sentimental--at worst totally inaccurate.
What a joke. He dosen't belong there in the first place. This just makes me sick, thinking he was someone special in the first place just to keep the blacks happy. What an injustice to a great nation like ours. I hope someone destroys it.
i do not like the design
why he doesn't belong there.
It looks like the statue of Kim Il Sung in the center of Pyongyang.
Wow! A racist that can type!
I see racism is still alive and well!! This man fought for freedom when no one else would!! I bet you would just love it if African Americans were still slaves huh?? People with your level of stupidity are one of the things preventing this world from success. Grow up because soon there won’t be a majority!
I suppose the Washington monument is there just to keep you happy...........?
The joke is on you jack, this memorial is something that your racist friends will never get!
honor and respect must be earned!!!!
I wonder if Kim Jong-il sent his memorial designer to Washington for inspiration.
lol...
Negative views of this memorial's statue, it's looks or it's "anything" seem silly and I wonder if these people are really in favor of this monument. It, to me, is a symbol of change, past, present and future. Positive change for all who want to have a better outlook on the issue of racism, bigotry and racial negativity for all people and all time. I pray that once these naysayers take a look at the history of this country and it's treatment of ALL WHO ARE DIFFERENT OR TREATED DIFFERENTLY BECAUSE OF RACE, CREED OR COLOR, as well as the history of this man and his works and efforts, to forgo the minor things and look and care about what this means to ALL AMERICANS AND PEOPLE OF THE WORLD. This is still the beginning, but what better place to start. It's no the artist or the art. IT'S THE DREAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I my opinion it is too in-your-face. It shows defiance, beligerance and self importance. Is that how he would like to be remembered? He looks more like an asian dictator than a civil rights leader. Maybe his memory would be better served without this statue reflecting such absolute distain and contempt. Hard to see the dream for his people.
People seem to forget that the fbi has a huge file on the" milk" man he was just a big mouth to me .... and he wasnt all that good at speeking either ............
anp.com is a good place to start for a new future of america
He was a lot better at speaking than you are at spelling..............
Love the memorial. "I Have a Dream" also. That someone might step up and provide some leadership and direction like MLK, with no political agenda, that is no afraid to make some tough decisions that need to be made regardless of popular opinion. Good timing for the MLK memorial to be unveiled.
Haters will always hate, that is just what they do. This memorial is dedicated to the anti-hate segment of America. God Bless the sculptor and all those who brought it fruition
wow!!!!! racism is still alive and kick'n. smdh...grow up. i think it looks nice. i think you racist need a dream, cause it must suck to be you. god bless rev. martin luther king, jr. r i p
@ rreese....so are you saying black people dont belong in this great nation????
This hurricane is a blessing in disguise. Have you seen the statue of MLK? It looks like the Chinese who carved it took a statue of Chairman Mao Zedong and put MLK's face on it. Can you imagine what MLK, a humble servant of God, would think of a humongous graven image, made by atheistic communists, bearing his likeness? Not likely to be a good fit. Hurricane Irene has given the folks in charge of this fiasco an opportunity to fix the problem before it gets out of hand. For God said, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:4-6)