In July 2024, a color photo of what appeared to be American activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King, went viral on X ( archived ), garnering more than 16.9 million views and 35,000 likes, as of this writing.

MONTGOMERY, AL - MAY 1956: Civil rights leader Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his wife Coretta Scott King pose for a photo across the street from the Alabama Judicial Building in May 1956 in Montgomery, Alabama. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

After months of planning and work, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on 24th and Lake has a fresh look. For a while, the MLK Memorial was closed to the public. The chipped concrete, bubbling bricks and uneven pavement created a hazard.