The Martin Luther King Memorial Quote Change

A quote carved in stone on the new Martin Luther King Jr. memorial in Washington will be changed after the inscription was criticized for not accurately reflecting the civil rights leader's words, according to a report on HuffingtonPost.com.

The inscription currently reads: "I was a drum major for justice, peace and righteousness." The phrase is chiseled into one side of a massive block of granite that includes King's likeness emerging from the stone. It became a point of controversy after the memorial opened in August.

A spokesman for the U.S Department of the Interior said Friday that Secretary Ken Salazar decided to have the quote changed.

Poet Maya Angelou has spoken out against the quote, saying last year that it makes Dr. King "sound like an arrogant twit," according to a report in The Christian Science Monitor and other news outlets. Meanwhile, a report on WXIA-TV has reported that U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a former King lieutenant, is downplaying the controversy, saying "The memorial is beautiful and so appropriate."

The phrase on King's monument is modified from a 1968 sermon in Memphis known as the "Drum Major Instinct," in which the 39-year-old King explained to his Atlanta congregation how he would like to be remembered at his funeral. This is what Dr. King actually said:

"Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness."