Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial

By Jennie Garcia, Adriana Bennett & Dr. Michelle Thompson

Each year, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration in New Orleans includes a stop on Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard where a commemorative statue was erected in 1976. Artist Frank Hayden, a former student at Xavier University and professor at Southern University, designed the abstract sculpture to honor King and symbolize reaching for brotherhood and reconciliation. Inside the sculpture are excerpts from Dr. King’s speeches as well as an opening in the back to represent a bullet hole.

Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd & Oretha Castle Haley Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70113 | In the median across from 1501 Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard.

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Jennie Garcia, Adriana Bennett , and Dr. Michelle Thompson, “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial,” New Orleans Historical, accessed October 2, 2026, https://neworleanshistorical.org/items/show/1411.
Published April 09, 2018. Last updated July 15, 2026.

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Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd & Oretha Castle Haley Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70113 | In the median across from 1501 Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard.