Public to get first glimpse of King memorial
By BEN NUCKOLS, Associated Press
Aug 22, 2011 4:58 AM CDT
Visitors to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial take pictures behind security fencing on the National Mall in Washington, Sunday, Aug., 21, 2011. The memorial, for the late civil rights leader, is scheduled to be dedicated later this week. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)   (Associated Press)

Tourists and Washingtonians alike are about to get their first up-close look at the memorial to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

The site is opening Monday morning without fanfare to kick off a week of celebrations ahead of Sunday's official dedication.

The memorial sits on the National Mall near the Tidal Basin, between memorials honoring Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson. It includes a 30-foot-tall sculpture of King and a 450-foot-long granite wall inscribed with 14 quotations from the civil rights leader. The public will be allowed onto the site starting at 11 a.m.

Sunday's dedication ceremony will mark the 48th anniversary of the March on Washington and King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech. President Barack Obama is scheduled to speak at the dedication.

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