Honoring a lasting legacy
Published 12:01 am Monday, January 10, 2011
As a 28-foot granite statue and accompanying interpretive center honoring Martin Luther King Jr. takes shape in the other Washington, civic groups and public agencies around the country are planning celebrations to mark what would have been the slain civil rights leader’s 82nd birthday this year.
Appropriately, communities are setting aside time to pause and honor King’s legacy by paying tribute to his life while solemnly pledging to advance his enduring message of peace and equality.
We suspect that given a choice between a monument and a living tribute, King would have picked the latter. Fortunately, no such choice needs to be made.
With the powerful Washington Monument as a backdrop, the new statue in Washington, D.C., will take its place among memorials honoring Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln. The four-acre King Memorial, scheduled to open later this year, is situated in the picturesque Tidal Basin, a short walk from the site where he delivered his world-changing “I Have a Dream” speech in August 1963. The memorial will serve not only as a tribute to King, but also as a reminder for future generations of their ultimate responsibility to continue the pursuit of social justice and equal opportunity.
Here at home, the community is invited to join in a series of free events Wednesday in Everett designed to recognize and honor King’s contributions.
A rally at the plaza of the Snohomish County Courthouse will begin at 10:30 a.m. and will precede a march through the streets of downtown Everett. Participants will travel north along Colby Avenue to 25th Street and back south on Wetmore Avenue before arriving at the Edward D. Hansen Conference Center on Hewitt Avenue. Marchers will be given priority seating for a noon event featuring live performances by local artists. Those who aren’t able to march are still encouraged to meet up with the group at noon to join in the celebration.
It is an enduring tribute to King’s legacy that similar groups around the country will also take to the streets in his honor. As our local procession travels the downtown corridor, we hope they’re mindful of the powerful words King shared on that hot August day in 1963:
“We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.”
