MEDIA ADVISORY
MLK "I Have a Dream" Commemorative Inscription
Unveiling Ceremony Scheduled for Aug. 22
New inscription marks the spot of civil rights leader's historic speech

WASHINGTON - The Department of the Interior's National Park Service will host a special inscription unveiling and dedication ceremony to commemorate the exact spot where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stood to deliver his historic "I Have a Dream Speech." The unveiling ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 22, 2003, at 4 p.m., at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The new commemorative inscription is dedicated to the passionate and moving historic "I Have Dream" speech that Dr. King delivered during the March on Washington Aug. 28, 1963. The inscription will remind visitors to the nation's Capitol of the historical significance of the speech and the struggle for freedom and equality in America.

It was 4 p.m. 40 years ago that Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. He spoke with a sense of certainty and moving passion to a spirited audience of more than 250,000 people that day in August.

Coretta Scott King and Judge Craig Manson, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife and Parks, will unveil the inscription. Many of the participants that were part of the program for the March on Washington 40 years ago will be on hand for the unveiling.

Who: Judge Craig Manson, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife & Parks
Coretta Scott King
John R. Lewis, U.S. House of Representatives
Anne Northup, U.S. House of Representatives
Eleanor Holmes-Norton, U.S. House of Representatives
Rev. Walter Fauntory, former member, U.S. House of Representatives
Thomas M. Williams of Louisville, Ky.

What: Martin Luther King Jr. "I Have a Dream" Unveiling of Commemorative
Inscription Ceremony

When: Friday, Aug. 22, 2003, at 4 p.m.

Where: Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.