The latest monument dedicated to Dr. King and his wife Coretta Scott King has been drawing a lot of criticism.
Many people shared their opinions about the statue including Coretta Scott King’s cousin, Seneca Scott. She stated that the statue looks like a penis. “If you can look at it from all angles, and it’s probably two people hugging each other, it’s four hands,” she said.
Scott continued, “It’s not the missing heads that’s the atrocity that other people clamp onto that; it’s a stump that looked like a penis. That’s a joke.”
The statue called “The Embrace” was created by artist Hank Willis Thomas after being inspired by the famous photo of the two hugging after Dr. King won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.
Seneca added, “The mainstream media…was reporting on it like it was all beautiful, ‘cause they were told they had to say that. But then when it came out, a little boy pointed out ‘That’s a penis!’ and everyone was like, ‘Yo, that’s a big old dong, man.’”
Before concluding, she said, “Ten million dollars were wasted to create a masturbatory metal homage to my legendary family members- one of the all-time greatest American families.”
Martin Luther King III feels differently about the statue. “I think that’s a huge representation of bringing people together. I think the artist did a great job. I’m satisfied. Yeah, it didn’t have my mom and dad’s images, but it represents something that brings people together.”
Hank Willis Thomas also commented on his artwork. “When we recognize that all storytelling is an abstraction, hopefully, it allows us to be open to more dynamic and complex forms of representation that don’t stick us to a narrative that oversimplifies a person or their legacy, and I think this work really tries to get to the heart of that.”
How do you feel about this statue?