'Do it over': New statue of Martin Luther King Jr. unveiled in Florida city faces backlash

A Florida city got a surprise last week when a new statue of Martin Luther King Jr. was unveiled.

The responses have ranged from polite to outright dismissive. “It doesn’t look like him,” Winter Park resident Nora Koenecke told NBC News.

It was unveiled during the annual Heritage Unity Festival and the backlash has flooded social media, reports The Root , with residents saying the statue has a cartoonish vibe, awkward proportions, and a face that looks nothing like Dr. King.

“A Florida community is outraged after an unflattering statue of Martin Luther King Jr was unveiled in their city,” reads an Instagram post made on Tuesday.

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“It looks awkward. It just didn’t look up to the standards that Winter Park is so well known for,” Jonathan Blount, co-founder of Essence magazine, told Florida TV station, WESH 2 News . Blount underscored local dissatisfaction, saying the statue appeared to be more of a caricature of Dr. King than a proper depiction of the iconic civil rights leader.

The artist who created the controversial piece is Andrew Luy of Huntsville, Alabama. He was selected by a committee of members from the city’s arts and parks communities. The design was approved by the King family prior to its installation, he said in his defence.

“The feedback I got from the committee and also the majority, actually all of the attendees that came to the unveiling, was greatly positive,” Luy told People Magazine . “I didn’t have direct contact with the King estate, but from what I heard, they were very happy with the representation of the sculpture of Dr. King.”

“Do it over,” insisted Blount. “I mean, it just isn’t good enough for a permanent lifelong representation of someone who is so important to our history,” he said, even suggesting he would help raise money for a redo.

Winter Park’s mayor, Sheila DeCiccio, acknowledged the concerned feedback from residents during a city council meeting and also highlighted the funds that have already been spent.

“Maybe it just didn’t come out the way everybody had hoped it would,” she said. “I don’t know that there’s anything we can do about it at this point, because it was a very big investment.”

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