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(Washington, DC, December 4) – On December 3, Civil Rights pioneers visited the site of the future Washington, DC Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial. From left to right: Reverend Samuel Billy Kyles, Reverend William Lawson, Rose Sanders, Dr. Clayborne Carson, Clarence Jones, Xernona Clayton, Reverend Otis Moss, Jr., Dolores Huerta, Reverend Amos Brown, Reverend Al Sampson.
Photo credit: Gediyon Kifle
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By AFRO Staff
(December 5, 2008) - Pioneers in the Civil Rights Movement gathered in the District on Dec. 2 and 3 for a briefing about the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial, which will be situated on the National Mall.
The civil rights trailblazers toured the memorial site, learning about its structural intricacies and construction status. Participants included the Rev. Samuel Kyles, the Rev. William Lawson and the Rev. Otis Moss Jr., all whom worked closely with King to eradicate America’s racial injustices. Each pioneer vowed unqualified support for the project, spearheaded by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
At a celebratory gala dinner in Washington, D.C., Harry E. Johnson Sr., president and CEO of the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Project Foundation Inc., urged the civil rights leaders to speak publicly about their involvement in the 1960s and ‘70s justice movement and to serve as ambassadors for the MLK Memorial Foundation. Likewise, Dr. King’s former lawyer, advisor and speech writer Clarence Jones stressed the importance of the memorial and King’s contributions to American history.
“Other than the Emancipation Proclamation and President Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. may have done more to achieve political, social and racial justice in America than any other person or event in the previous 448 years,” Jones said. “This memorial is celebrating the greatest leader that this country has ever had.”