It sucks.
I don't want to hear about how every person sees it differently - show me one person who thinks it's good. Except of course the Chinese guy who has never seen or studied MLKJr. or his family that has been profiting off of his death for decades.
It's despicable on every level.
The worst part - besides the glaring problems with choice of stone (Chinese), choice of artist (Chinese), or the asinine forced imagery of the broken rock - is the face. IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE HIM!
In fact, it looks like a racist's depiction of him! The lips are overly swollen. The nose is overly broadened. The pose - my god, the pose...
Let's be clear: Martin Luther King, Jr. deserves a memorial. Certainly more so than many of our elected leaders. But let's give him the memorial he deserves. He was not a Stalinist reformer, imposing equality under an iron fist. He was not a racial activist, advocating violent opposition. He was not a man who stood on a perch and watched as his armies went forth carrying his banner. He was a man who attacked the system through non-violence, through peace and love. He was a man who changed the course of history not with stern looks and crossed arms, but with words, words that challenged us to hope and dream of a better day, not just for blacks, but for all Americans.
I don't claim to be a King historian, nor a racial historian. I don't claim to be an authority on monuments or memorials. But I do know when our national history is being slapped in the face.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial is a slap in the face, not only to Dr. King, not only to the millions to whom he is an inspiration and hero, but to the very country that he changed.
Looking at the blackface Mao that rises out of the granite, this country that owes so much to the man can only come to a single conclusion: the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial is a disgrace to Martin Luther King, Jr.
No comments:
Post a Comment