Park Service to put full MLK quote on memorial

Quote as currently seen on MLK Memorial

WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Park Service plans to remove an inscription from the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington and replace it with a full quotation from the civil rights leader. Critics had said the paraphrase didn’t accurately reflect King’s words.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced the plan Friday. The memorial’s architect had hoped to simply add words, without removal, to place the phrase in context.

The inscription reads: “I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness.”

The full quotation is different: “Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter.”

This story was written by Brett Zongker of the Associated Press.