[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 26 (Thursday, March 9, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1386-S1387]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           LEGISLATION CONCERNING DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

 Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was 
an extraordinary man who left a legacy for each of us as Americans and 
also as Georgians. On a hot summer day, August 28, 1963, Dr. King 
delivered his now famous and unforgettable ``I Have A Dream'' speech on 
the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. His words will 
always stay with us and help remind our Nation that we must look to our 
own home and family, friends and community, to see what we can do to 
make a better world for all. As Dr. King himself said, ``When we let 
freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, 
from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day 
when all of God's children, Black men and White men, Jews and Gentiles, 
Protestants and Catholics will be able to join hands and sing in the 
words of that old Negro spiritual, `Free at last, Free at last, Thank 
God Almighty, We are free at last.' ''
  Thousands of visitors come to our Nation's capital to see where 
Martin Luther King delivered the ``I Have A Dream'' speech. 
Unfortunately, there is not a marker or words to show where he helped 
change the course of our country's history. To commemorate this 
historic event and truly honor Dr. King, today I am introducing 
legislation which directs the Secretary of the Interior to insert a 
plaque at the exact site of the speech on the steps of the

[[Page S1387]]

Lincoln Memorial. It is my hope that this marker will preserve Dr. 
King's legacy for generations to come. The Secretary of the Interior 
may accept contributions to help defray the costs of preparing and 
inserting the plaque on the steps. This legislation is noncontroversial 
and is consistent with what has been done previously at the Memorial to 
commemorate similar events. The bill is a Senate companion to 
legislation introduced by Representative Ann Northup of Kentucky. I 
look forward to working with her on securing its enactment.

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