The MLK Memorial Selection Committee voted unanimously this evening to reject a proposal for a memorial to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who was assassinated in 1968. No one has come close to replacing his remarkable voice as a civil rights icon in this nation. Robert Katz, an artist and professor of art at the University of Maine, Augusta, presented his most recent iteration as his team watched at city hall.
“As I arrived at city hall, I saw a long line forming to get in. At first I thought it was to see my presentation and then I realized there was an election,” he quipped at the outset of the meeting, drawing laughter to the room.
“I will report back to my colleagues that it is not there,” said city councilor Jill Duson, who will not be running for re-election this fall, and who was referring to the city council.
During the Committee discussion following the presentation by artist Katz, Ethan Hipple, Assistant Director of the city’s Parks & Recreation Division, said: “It’s not perfect,….but I love the concept. Let’s go for it.”
But the deck was stacked against him as Marcia Minter, a consultant and wife of local artist Daniel, ticked off all the reasons why this iteration should be scrapped. No earth-based effort could meet the standard of a community that has elevated King to sainthood in a non-Catholic faith.
Rev. Kenneth L. Lewis, Jr. objected repeatedly to the empty chair proposed by Katz, although he did not volunteer to sit in it in his spare time. It wasn’t his style. Lewis said he doesn’t sense King and his strength here. “There are too many elements missing for me. I would not vote to send this to the City Council.”
Whatever Katz proposed as an asset to the project, the mostly black Committee members used against him in their rejection of his presentation.
Consultant Marcia Minter said that this iteration is “not a memorial to King and is mostly about a movement….the Welcoming Table does ‘not greet seasonality’ because during winter months it will not be seen. The Memorial needs lights and the artist does not appear open to modifications she charged. (Katz had said his proposal did not include lights because at night it might invite other problems). Minter continued that the table and chair do not “feel connected.” She said: “This is not big and bold enough to stand for the man. The artist was not willing to be bold enough to share his legacy, Otherwise, it looks like a park.” Illustrator Daniel Minter sitting beside his wife, Marcia, said: “”It’s bold to wait for what we really want.”
It’s been many years since Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. During those intervening years his legacy has grown exponentially. No leader has emerged to replace his loss to the black community. No one. King is an ethereal figure that defies earthly commemeration by this Committee. They will continue to reject until someone is found to occupy the empty chair in the park. It could be a long wait.
There is a rumor around that the Committee’s goal was to end the selection because city manager Jon Jennings did not want it to continue. The idea for this originated with State Rep. Rachel Talbot-Ross. She and Jennings were reported to have a strained relationship.
Three applicants responded to the RFP. Two were selected as finalists. One of those withdrew recently, leaving Robert Katz, as the sole applicant.
Duson is also the chair of the “Anti-renter Housing Committee” which has been criticized by this blogger for its lack of support for renters in the city of Portland. During her tenure, no legislation has been considered to ease the plight of renters during the gentrification of the city. Steps could be taken to do that at no cost to the city if the city did not persist in its bias against renters.