WASHINGTON — Seven weeks after a hurricane wrecked plans for the original ceremony, the dedication of Washington’s new Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial is scheduled to take place today.
President Barack Obama is slated to deliver the keynote address at 11 a.m., after three hours of pomp and celebration at the site of the $120 million granite memorial on the northwest shore of the Tidal Basin, off Independence Avenue.
The crowds gathering today are not expected to be the size of the 250,000 that organizers had predicted for the original dedication. That was planned for Aug. 28, the 48th anniversary of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington.
But the foundation that created the memorial still has set up a stage for entertainers and 10,000 folding chairs for spectators. The Washington Post
