By AH

May 13, 2008 9:04 AM | Link to this

Perhaps someone should sketch it out before they start carving it out in stone. Just thinking…

By dirty white boy

May 13, 2008 9:18 AM | Link to this

Sculpted in China??? What the F???

Is’nt there a black american sculpter that can capture the spirit of the man?

Just sending the work to china is an insult to his legacy. Last I heard we had granite right here in Georgia from where was born.

Whose dumbass decision was it to send the work to China?

Damn, that even upsets my old hard white a*.

DWB

By Paul Whiteley Sr.

May 13, 2008 9:20 AM | Link to this

I never saw Martin Luther King Jr. in person, but did see him speak on television several times during the 1960s. I was always impressed by the content of what he said and by his activism. Dr. King possessed the quality that only truly great people possess; humility. If it is possible to depict humility in the statue’s likeness of King, it must be done. He was confrontational, but confronted a nation and its people in a spirit of love and non-violence. I have contributed money to the MLK Jr. National Memorial and have no problem with the Chinese doing the sculpting. I just hope the final product is done well and does Dr. King justice. I love Martin Luther King Jr., my hero.

By CJ

May 13, 2008 9:53 AM | Link to this

Whoever authorized the statue to be made of non-native materials was a moron. Probably the same person who designed his pose in the statue.

By AmPatriot

May 13, 2008 10:00 AM | Link to this

Looks to me like the Chinese sculptor has been watching too much rap. Dr. King never looked like that. That carving is an insult to everything he struggled for.

Use it to make a gravel walkway to an American carved statue that actually looks like him.

By jasper

May 13, 2008 10:03 AM | Link to this

It’s time to organize a march against this statue. This can’t be made in China.

By Mapes

May 13, 2008 10:23 AM | Link to this

The statue looks like Ving Raimes playing a Los Angeles record producer. Surely we can do better.

Did the King family get a kickback from the Chinese sculptor? That’s the only explanation that makes sense.

By Neal

May 13, 2008 10:51 AM | Link to this

This statue is an insult to the character of Dr. MLK Jr. The pose gives him an arrogant demeanor that he truly did not have. With his arms folded he appears to be getting ready to rap or break dance. Everyone should be outraged at this obvious insult!

By M

May 13, 2008 11:25 AM | Link to this

What’s so bad about the statute? So his arms are crossed, well he did confront the hardest issue of his time. I think the look on his face is thoughful, not rapperesque as one person commented.

By StevenCee

May 13, 2008 11:27 AM | Link to this

I too, think this is a travesty… In all the years I’ve seen MLK, in news footage, films, pictures, etc., I have NEVER seen him in such a stance, and this stance is a classic position depicting pretty much everything that King wasn’t, closed, stiff, cold, formal, authoritarian, menacing, stand-offish, haughty, imposing, etc. etc. etc….

I do think the race or nationality of the artist is of no concern, for as Martin said, we should only be judged by the content of our character. So, too, artists must be judged by the content of their art, and his does reveal some of his heritage, as this image has far more in common with Mao, than it does Martin….

I do find it awfully difficult to believe no other artist’s design topped this one. I’d rather they postpone the memorial’s opening than use this as its centerpiece.

By Boots

May 13, 2008 11:37 AM | Link to this

The folks on this committee couldn’t organize a two car funeral.

By Steve

May 13, 2008 11:51 AM | Link to this

I don’t have a problem with the pose or the nationality of the artist. But it kind of doesn’t look like him.

By demwit

May 13, 2008 12:06 PM | Link to this

Is that Martin Luther King or Chairman Mao Zedong???

By politicalcorrectnessgoneawry

May 13, 2008 12:11 PM | Link to this

Really now, what did you expect. Something modest? Something tasteful? Something appropriate?

The size, scope and cost of this project is an embarrassment to the legacy of Martin Luther King.

The next thing we’ll hear is that the King family will change an admission fee to see this travesty.

By HB

May 13, 2008 12:14 PM | Link to this

What’s wrong with that commission secretary, Thomas Luebke?? He’s a complete fool. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE STATUE—Can you hear me now??

I’m a proud Morehouse Alumnus and I find that the sculptor’s perspective of Dr. King is perfectly fine—it’s simply a pensive “pose” for the intellect he was and still is.

Calm down. Talk about something else.

By HB

May 13, 2008 12:17 PM | Link to this

What’s wrong with that commission secretary, Thomas Luebke?? He’s a complete fool. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE STATUE—Can you hear me now??

I’m a proud Morehouse Alumnus and I find that the sculptor’s perspective of Dr. King is perfectly fine—it’s simply a pensive “pose” for the intellect he was and still is.

Calm down. Talk about something else.

By politicalcorrectnessgoneawry

May 13, 2008 12:43 PM | Link to this

Holy crap, I wrote “Martin Luther King” so, I guess, that means I owe the King family a royalty.

By VERITAS

May 13, 2008 12:45 PM | Link to this

Intellect? He was a known plagarist. Isn’t there enough King stuff around the country? Its bad enough his birthday is force-fed down everyones throats. Judging by the condition of the Black community, his life was wasted.

By VERITAS

May 13, 2008 12:46 PM | Link to this

Intellect? He was a known plagarist. Isn’t there enough King stuff around the country? Its bad enough his birthday is force-fed down everyones throats. Judging by the condition of the Black community, his life was wasted.

By American

May 13, 2008 12:48 PM | Link to this

I don’t think this does him any justice, not the man I remember seeing.

By Tell It Like It Is

May 13, 2008 12:58 PM | Link to this

My suggestion would be to let the Corporate CEO’s that have been extorted to pay for it determine whether they go with this or another version.

By Mark

May 13, 2008 1:41 PM | Link to this

MY dream came true!!

By Bob

May 13, 2008 2:14 PM | Link to this

Made cheaply in China selected over African-American artists!!??

Shocking! Unbelievably disturbing!! Is there a white man getting kickbacks on this deal!!!

By Elizabeth Hartley Filliat

May 13, 2008 2:14 PM | Link to this

A wise person never uses crossed arms over chest in order to elevate and transform the spirit of others and Martin Luther King, Jr. was a very wise man. This statue is not of King’s spirit. The body language depicted within this statue represents, to me, a desecration of what he was about on this Earth. A person filled with the urgency to see justice prevail through a loving spirit would reach outward to others, not close himself off from them with folded arms as if closing all communication with others. The book of his writings, “Strength to Love,” which is found in the King Center and compiled by Coretta Scott King, describes many times over how his tenacity and will to see justice prevail in the face of injustice was sustained by an overwhelming love which he found in the words and actions of Jesus. That love motivated him to keep going forward in spite of overwhelming obstacles. MKLJr. is no longer with us in the flesh but his statue, and his spirit, can inspire others for centuries to come. However, this statue MUST be redone for this to happen. King deserves no less. This statue does not inspire. It is not him. No one is inspired by brute force which seems to be the visual image in this rendition. King was a man of God. Let his statue depict open arms reaching outward to others. His tenacity can be shown through his torso, his legs, and even in the steadfast look in his eyes. The love of God will come through that type of statue with the continuing power to tranform this world for good and justice by means of communication with all. Ask yourself what would Martin want. Your inner voice, or the Holy Spirit, will tell you. It does not matter what any of us thinks, including King’s nephew or others in his immediate family who loved him. We each see through the glass darkly including family members. King stood towers above others in his vision of what humanity could be and in his loving allegiance to do God’s will while he was on this Earth. This statue is NOT what he would have wanted to speak for his life on Earth. It represents the polar opposite of what he was about. He would want an image of himself that would continue to transform the spirits of others for generations to come. This statue fails to do that. I want to visit the Mall in Washington and see his statue there before I die, but I do not care to see this statue as King. This statue defeats the human spirit through what appears to be stubborn willfulness and lack of communication with others. King needs to be immortalized in a statue that inspires all people to reach outward to others for the will of God to be done on Earth through the transforming power of love. Elizabeth Hartley Filliat

By William F.

May 13, 2008 2:26 PM | Link to this

Karma back to most blacks. That statue is just like the memory of mlk, a skewed figmant of imagination.

By Csquared

May 13, 2008 2:33 PM | Link to this

at what point in this process (that’s taken years) did the commission say, let’s get some idea of what we’re getting and ask for a sketch? and i’m with several posters in asking why send this to china? never liked that idea and to have commissioned an artist and materials from a country that’s still having problems with human rights is an affront to everything that King stood for.

By DWG

May 13, 2008 2:57 PM | Link to this

Scrap it. The people involved with this probably sent it overseas to save money and lost sight of the significance of the piece. If it was sent to a world class sculptor then he isn’t as good as they think he is. A great artist would have done more homework and realized there is a middle ground between strength and compassion that is missing in this piece. The crossed arms look unnatural, very stiff and awkward. Looks like a principle in the hallway or a warden looking over the prisoners in the field. Definitely time to start over.

By DWG

May 13, 2008 3:11 PM | Link to this

And Bob, go to the mlkmemorial.org, click on “the team” and executive staff and see what a racist you are. Why do you let the color of someones skin blind you from the truth?

By Charles

May 13, 2008 3:25 PM | Link to this

Even the dream of Martin Luther King Jr. has been transformed into a nightmare. Take a good critical look at society; it’s the best evidence. It stands to reason that the rendering of his statue would be a misrepresentation.

The legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., as rendered by the powers that be, reminds me of the account of the Trial of Jesus, by Professor Douglas Linder. Professor Linder writes, “No one played a greater role in the transformation of the Jesus of history into the Christ of faith than the apostle Paul. Although Paul never met Jesus during his life (he claimed to have seen Jesus after his crucifixion)—and knew relatively little about him, Paul’s interpretations of Jesus’ teachings greatly influenced later Christian writers. Paul is seen by some scholars to have “substituted for the historical Jesus a heavenly redeemer on the model of similar figures in the religions of the Greco-Roman world.”

“Paul headed the Gentile branch of Christianity, while Jesus’ brother, James, led the Jewish branch of Christianity. With the destruction of the Temple and the Jerusalem branch by Roman forces in 70 C.E., the Jewish Christianity was effectively extinguished, leaving Paul’s Gentile branch to flourish and spread. The rest, as they say, is history.”

Unfortunately, the legacy, history, and the statue of Martin Luther King Jr. has not been interpreted and portrayed by competent African American scholars’ i.e. J.A. Rogers, John Henrik Clarke, Dr. Ben Jochannon, John Jackson, George G.M. James, etc… Therefore, sculptors today are greatly influenced by people with varying views. The statue that’s presented by Chinese sculptor Lei Yixin is an accurate portrayal of Martin Luther King Jr. just as an other worldly Jesus that’s presented in most churches today is an accurate account.

The Martin Luther King Jr. legacy and statue that we have today is the interpretation of unscrupulous and or detached persons from the life of MLK but sanctioned by the powers that be; the results are a nightmare. And the rest, as they say, is history.

By DJ

May 13, 2008 3:57 PM | Link to this

ONLY ONE QUESTION HERE THAT IS IMPORTANT: HOW MUCH $$$$$$ IS THE KING FAMILY DEMANDING IN ORDER TO ‘LET’ THE GOVERNMENT HONOR HIS LEGACY WITH THIS MEMORIAL?

By Blkshepherd

May 13, 2008 4:06 PM | Link to this

To be honest, The statue does not in any form or shape resemble MLKjr..The eyes nose are not that of DR King. You mean to tell me with all the still and video of MLK..this is as close a likeness to the man as they can get? My goodness I could have cut out an old photo from countless library books and provided it to the sculptor which by the way, duhh..are there no black sculptors? no american sculptors? I am certain there are very talented white and black sculptors that would have captured the very essence of MLK. Look at Mount Rushmore, Look at Jefferson, Lincoln Memorials..sure enough looks like ole Abe and Jefferson to me!

By Blkshepherd

May 13, 2008 4:06 PM | Link to this

To be honest, The statue does not in any form or shape resemble MLKjr..The eyes nose are not that of DR King. You mean to tell me with all the still and video of MLK..this is as close a likeness to the man as they can get? My goodness I could have cut out an old photo from countless library books and provided it to the sculptor which by the way, duhh..are there no black sculptors? no american sculptors? I am certain there are very talented white and black sculptors that would have captured the very essence of MLK. Look at Mount Rushmore, Look at Jefferson, Lincoln Memorials..sure enough looks like ole Abe and Jefferson to me!

By martin stuart

May 13, 2008 4:29 PM | Link to this

My opinion is that the design itself is best left to people who are smarter than me, however the fact that it is being carved by someone from China is just another example of how we are selling out our country piece by piece.

Never mind the irony of China’s human rights record, there is no reason why an American artist could not be utilized for this American memorial to this American hero, except the obvious. They probably saved some money.

By Tell It Like It Is

May 13, 2008 5:04 PM | Link to this

This looks like one of the old statues found in the Soviet Union or that of a dictator from some third world country —- not the nobel prize winning Martin Luther King —- a compassionate proponent of non-violence.

By DIEHARD DREAMER

May 13, 2008 5:12 PM | Link to this

MADE IN COMMUNIST CHINA? ARE U KIDDING ME?

I RATHER IT BE MADE IN INDIA WITH GA CLAY !

WHAT A JOKE!!! IF MRS KING WAS ALIVE SHE WOULDN’T DO THIS - IT GOES TO SHOW SOMEBODY DROP THE BALL AND THERE WAS NO DUE PROCESS.

WHAT A JOKE!

By common sense

May 13, 2008 5:14 PM | Link to this

First, why the statue is being carved in China should be an insult given China’s human rights record.

Second, why a model statue wasn’t done and approved of before the REAL statue work began is beyond me.