The Dream, Bronze memorial statue at Oregon Convention Center, Portland, US
The Dream is an 8-foot bronze statue of Martin Luther King Jr. at Northeast Holladay Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, outside the Oregon Convention Center's northeast corner. King steps forward in a suit and tie, right arm bent. Behind him stands a young man with rolled-up sleeves, a woman wading ashore, and a girl releasing his coattail; a small dog sits by his foot.
The sculpture was installed on August 28, 1998, coinciding with the 35th anniversary of King's famous speech. This deliberate timing links the work directly to a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement.
The idea came from students at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School nearly a decade before the 1998 dedication, and state Senator Bill McCoy nurtured it. The memorial has served as a rallying point: Charles Lewis announced his city commissioner candidacy beside it in 2007, and a march honoring King started there in 2008.
The sculpture is easy to access as a public artwork at the convention center. Visitors can view and photograph it freely at any time without restrictions.
Paul Knauls, called the "unofficial mayor" of Northeast Portland, was instrumental in securing funding for the sculpture, and in 2014 he told Oregon Public Broadcasting that "it's still surprising how many people don't even know the statue is there".
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