The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial is a memorial scheduled to be dedicated on Washington, D.C.'s National Mall on August 28, 2011, the 48th anniversary of King's "I Have a Dream" speech. It will be located adjacent to the FDR Memorial, between the Lincoln Memorial and Jefferson Memorial, and will honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's national and international contributions to the American dream—a dream he spoke of in terms of possibility and hope—and its pillars of freedom, democracy, and opportunity for all.

King will be the first African-American honored with a memorial on or near the National Mall area and the the only one not of a President or a war. The King Memorial will be administered by the National Park Service (NPS).


The memorial will officially open to visitors before the actual dedication, with designated visiting hours Monday-Thursday, August 22-25, 2011.[32]

The official dedication is scheduled to take place at 11am Sunday August 28, following a pre-dedication concert at 10am. There will also be a post-dedication concert at 2pm.

President Barack Obama will deliver remarks, and performances will include Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder. The ceremony will include many other individuals in various roles, including members of the King family; civil rights leaders John Lewis, Jesse Jackson, and Andrew Young; actor Jamie Foxx; and filmmaker George Lucas. Predictions are that a crowd of as many as 250,000 may be present at the dedication.

In addition to the August 28 ceremony and concerts, an interfaith prayer service is scheduled at the Washington National Cathedral on August 27, as well as a day-long youth event and gala/pre-dedication dinner at the Washington DC Convention Center, also on the 27th.

The two companies selected to spearhead the Martin Luther King Memorial Dedication Ceremony week of events are GEP Washington and Susan Davis, international.