The following is an excerpt from King Boston
Gift caps off King Boston’s multimillion-dollar campaign to fund commission, construction and installation of “The Embrace” memorial
Boston, MA (April 27, 2021): On the anniversary of Coretta Scott King’s birth, April 27, the Trustees of the Yawkey Foundation provided a $1 million capstone gift to King Boston that will go toward “The Embrace,” a 22-foot-high memorial consisting of four intertwined bronze arms intended to inspire the social justice values that Dr. King and Coretta Scott King espoused. The grant caps off the $9-million effort by King Boston to pay for the memorial’s construction and the surrounding “Freedom Plaza,”
“The Trustees of the Yawkey Foundation are deeply moved by the symbolism of this monument in Boston and are honored to play a part in celebrating the inspiring lives and legacies of Coretta Scott King and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,” said Reverend Dr. Ray Hammond, Grants Committee Chairman and Trustee of the Yawkey Foundation. “The poignancy of how this remarkable couple worked together in pursuit of a Beloved Community, with social justice and equality for all in a better Boston and a better world – demonstrates an enduring lesson on the power of understanding, personal growth and healing.”
Added Dr. Myechia Minter-Jordan, Grants Committee Member and Trustee of the Yawkey Foundation: “The Embrace monument is a living testament to the important, and sometimes difficult, stories that need to be told and conversations that need to be had about the Kings and their lives’ work, as well as the critical contributions of the other esteemed Boston civil rights leaders and activists highlighted in the Freedom Plaza, each of whom was uniquely essential to advancing the movement.”
This gift completes the $9-million funding needed for the building of “The Embrace” which is one piece of King Boston’s plan for racial and economic justice and part of an ongoing $15-million campaign that will pay for events surrounding the memorial, staffing, and the founding of the King Center for Economic Justice, which supports action-oriented solutions to end economic and social disparities.
“We are tremendously grateful for this capstone gift from the Yawkey Foundation on this very special day when we celebrate Mrs. King’s countless contributions working hand-in-hand with her husband to fight poverty, racial prejudice, while pursuing justice and equal opportunity,” said Imari Paris Jeffries, Executive Director of King Boston. “Bringing to life the Kings’ vision of eliminating racial and economic inequity through The Embrace and Freedom Plaza will only be accomplished by fostering opportunities for honest conversation and a commitment to mutual understanding, accountability and healing. Sharing news of the Yawkey Foundation gift is especially meaningful on this day honoring Coretta Scott King.”
In 1952, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. came to Boston as a doctoral student at Boston University and met Coretta Scott, a fellow at the New England Conservatory of Music. She became his wife and important lifelong partner in leading the civil rights movement in Boston and across the country, continuing to fight for justice throughout her life. Boston, and the Boston Common in particular, are indelibly etched in the Kings’ legacy.
Dr. King returned to Boston in 1965 to address the Massachusetts Legislature at the Massachusetts State House and led a famous civil rights march from what is now Nubian Square to the Boston Common, where he addressed thousands from the Parkman Bandstand. The Embrace will be unveiled in October of 2022.
“The loving, loyal relationship between Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King, and the special role Boston played in the couple’s lives, feels particularly meaningful to the Yawkey Foundation Trustees,” said Maureen H. Bleday, Chief Executive Officer and Trustee of the Yawkey Foundation. “We are inspired and humbled by how the monument evokes the joining of hands as a symbol of humanity, personal reckoning and growth, and a sincere commitment to connectedness and healing.”
About King Boston
Founded in 2017, King Boston is a privately funded nonprofit working closely with the City of Boston and the Boston Foundation to create a living memorial and programs honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King and their time and work together in Boston. “The Embrace” memorial, the King Center for Economic Justice, and Embrace Ideas are intended to inspire and activate social justice values that empower each of us to consider how we can realize the King Family’s vision of an equitable and fair society.
About the Yawkey Foundation
The Yawkey Foundation is dedicated to perpetuating the philanthropic legacy of Tom and Jean Yawkey, whose eight decades of quiet generosity supported individuals and families in the communities that were closest to their hearts – Massachusetts and Georgetown County, South Carolina. Having awarded more than $500 million to-date in charitable grants to organizations focused on Health Care, Education, Human Services, Youth and Amateur Athletics, Arts and Culture, and Conservation and Wildlife, Yawkey Foundation is committed to preserving and sustaining the charitable values of the Yawkeys by investing in impactful nonprofits providing resources, opportunity, and dignity to the vulnerable and underserved. For more information, please visit www.yawkeyfoundation.org
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