Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. will take his place next to Roosevelt, Lincoln, Jefferson and Washington Nov. 13 when ground is broken on a National Mall memorial in his honor.
“I think this has been a very long time in the coming,” said Harry Johnson, president of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Foundation. “All of us are very excited.”
Former President Bill Clinton, author Maya Angelou, Oprah Winfrey, Muhammad Ali and other dignitaries and celebrities are expectedto attend the Nov. 13 groundbreaking ceremony. More than 5,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony, with other galas in Washington and around the country scheduled for that day.
The monument will be the first to a black American on the National Mall.
“He is recognized in his place of honor, where he deserves to be,” Johnson said.
The total cost of the memorial is $100 million, of which $65 million already has been raised. Foundation spokeswoman Rica Orszag said she expects to have the remaining $35 million in hand soon.
Construction of the memorial, which will sit on the Tidal Basin near the Jefferson and Roosevelt memorials, is expected to be completed by 2008.
The memorial will span 4 acres, with a large stone with King etched into the side as the centerpiece.
