Martin Luther King III to speak at MLK monuments unveiling and celebration November 19
Unified Civic Monuments Project
Media contact: info@unifiedmonuments.org, 269.861.6533
Benton Harbor, Mich. - The Unified Civic Monuments Project announces that Martin Luther King III, the eldest son of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, will visit the Twin Cities community as the honored guest and speaker at a celebration of the double unveiling of monuments dedicated to his father.
On Tuesday, November 19, the festivities will begin at 10:30 a.m. with an unveiling ceremony at the monument site in the Margaret B. Upton Arboretum in St. Joseph. At 11:00, all are invited to march with the Benton Harbor and St. Joseph high school bands to the Benton Harbor Dwight P. Mitchell City Center Park. The Benton Harbor unveiling ceremony begins there at 11:30.
At 1:30 p.m., the Unified Civic Monuments Project and the Lake Michigan College Speaker Series will welcome the public to a free special engagement featuring Mr. King at the LMC Mendel Center Grand Upton Hall. During the event, “A Conversation with Martin Luther King III,” Mr. King will touch on a variety of topics including the importance of continuing the struggle for civil rights and the importance of individual action in making his father’s dream a reality.
Reservations for free general admission seating at the 1:30 p.m. Speaker Series event may be made at bit.ly/mlk3talk. Advance reservations are encouraged to guarantee seating. Free general admission may also be available at the door up to the venue capacity.
A limited amount of bus transportation will be available between the two monument sites, to the Mendel Center, and back. Food trucks will be available on the grounds of the Mendel Center beginning at 11:30 a.m. Food and specialty beverage tickets for the food trucks may be purchased in the Grand Upton Hall Lobby. Cash and credit cards will be accepted. Attendees are also welcome to bring their own lunch. Complimentary lemonade, ice tea and water will be available inside Grand Upton Hall.
Volunteers to serve as ushers at the unveiling are encouraged to reach out at unifiedmonuments.org/contact or through the UCMP Facebook page.
The unveiling is the culmination of 15 years of dreaming and four years of planning and fundraising for the revised vision of ‘Two Kings for Two Cities’ by Emanuel and Sharon Brown, founders of Benton Harbor’s African American History and Literature Gallery, in collaboration with partners Krasl Art Center, Lake Michigan College, the cities of Benton Harbor and St. Joseph, and Berrien Community Foundation, who assembled volunteers from around the community into the Unified Civic Monuments Project. Together, the group has raised over $900,000 to bring these monuments to life, with installation now underway. This project is the only collaborative, multi-city effort in the country honoring Dr. King.
The funds to install the monuments were donated by more than 400 individuals, groups, and corporations. The UCMP was also awarded a matching grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation through a Patronicity crowdfunding campaign.
“Because of Benton Harbor’s and St. Joseph’s united commitment in their devoted giving, UCMP stands proud and eternally grateful in scheduling to deliver the fruit of these gifts back to the people,” Sharon Brown said.
Martin Luther King III
From speaking to thousands at the 60th Anniversary of March on Washington in August 2023 to his dozens of arrests during peaceful protests, Martin Luther King III is shepherding the healing of our nation and the world.
As the oldest son of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King, Martin Luther King III is a humanitarian and thought leader on the world stage, a peacemaker, and a negotiator on some of today’s most critical national and international platforms for social change. Amplifying the work of his father, Mr. King and his wife Arndrea Waters King, have devoted their lives to promoting global human rights and eradicating racism, violence, and poverty, earning a reputation as a respected international statesman and one of the world’s most passionate advocates for the poor and oppressed. Together as Chairman and President respectively, Martin and Arndrea lead the Drum Major Institute (DMI), an organization based on the ideals of Dr. King.
Mr. King regularly appears on CNN, MSNBC, NBC News, and ABC News. His opinion pieces have been published in The Washington Post, The New York Times, on CNN.com, and other major news outlets.
Unified Civic Monuments Project
The Unified Civic Monuments Project is led by the founders of the African American History & Literature Gallery, with the support of Krasl Art Center, Lake Michigan College, Berrien Community Foundation, the BH-SJ Arts & Culture Social Justice Group, and the cities of Benton Harbor and St. Joseph.
To learn more about the ongoing programming of this project, including updates to the unveiling celebrations, please visit UnifiedMonuments.org.
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