Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, National memorial in West Potomac Park, United States.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is a national monument at the Tidal Basin in West Potomac Park, Washington, D.C., featuring a 30-foot granite statue. The figure emerges from two large stone blocks and stands before a curved wall inscribed with quotations.
The monument opened to the public in 2011 and became the first on the National Mall dedicated to an African American. It commemorates the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and the leadership of a man known for peaceful protest.
The memorial's design draws on a line from King's 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech: "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope." The entrance is cut through a split granite block called the Mountain of Despair, and visitors pass through the gap to reach the Stone of Hope, where King's figure stands facing the Tidal Basin.
The site sits on the western shore of the Tidal Basin and can be reached on foot from several other memorials nearby. National Park Service rangers are often present to answer questions about the grounds and what they represent.
The memorial's official address, 1964 Independence Avenue, S.W., commemorates the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The central figure was carved by Chinese sculptor Lei Yixin. The design takes its theme from King's "I Have a Dream" line: "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope."
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