Every third Monday in January marks the American federal holiday known as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. There are a number of monuments, memorials, streets, libraries and schools named after the African-American activist, but probably the most random (and by the far the coldest) is the Martin Luther King Jr. Living Memorial in Anchorage, Alaska. When the state officially recognized the holiday in 1986 the city began preparations for a memorial, which was completed in 1999.
Community contributions totaled over $250,000 to create bronze panels and a bust by artist Jerome Meadows as well as to build a surrounding brick plaza. I’m not sure King ever visited Alaska, which is shame because he missed the chance to see Russia from Sarah Palin’s house, but his memory lives on.
