Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Less than a year into its existence, the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial is undergoing a bit of a makeover.
Crews will remove a quote by Dr. King that was controversially paraphrased and replace it with the full quote.
The quote that currently appears on the King Memorial says “I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness.”
That is drastically different from what King actually said:
“Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all the other shallow things will not matter.”
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis said the change is to help restore the context and make King’s words more clear.
Despite many critics being happy with the change, the memorial’s chief architect is furious with the move.
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Ed Jackson Jr. says changing the quote will deface and scar the granite.
The change will happen over the next few months, and crews hope it will be finished in time for King’s birthday next year.
