Memorials: The Journey to Civil Rights

“We shall overcome because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice,” declared Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968. By the time you read that quote at the conclusion of this walk you will have encountered the author of the Declaration of Independence, drafter of the country’s first bill of rights, the champion of the New Deal and the woman who wrote the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. For two weeks each spring the Tidal Basin glows with a pink-white hue of thousands of Japanese cherry trees. Yet once the glory of the blossoms has vanished the memorials around this manmade body of water continue to resonate with the American principles of independence, equal rights, and justice. An assembly of brilliant leaders is on view, including the only First Lady featured in a presidential memorial and the first private citizen honored on the National Mall. Keep a look out for a Scottish terrier, too.

Memorials: The Journey to Civil Rights visits the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, George Mason Memorial, Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial plus views of the Washington Monument, U.S. Air Force Memorial, and District War Memorial.

Discover more great D.C. walking tour adventures: Women Who Changed America and Memorials: Remembrances of War