In Washington, competing rallies were held Saturday on the forty-seventh anniversary of the historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. The right-wing Fox News broadcaster Glenn Beck organized a large rally in front of the Lincoln Memorial, the same site as the 1963 march. Many of the speakers, including Sarah Palin, repeatedly invoked Martin Luther King’s name.

Sarah Palin: “You have the same still spine and the moral courage of Washington and Lincoln and Martin Luther King. It is in you. It will sustain you as it sustained them. So with pride in the red, white and blue, with gratitude to our men and women in uniform, let’s stand together. Let’s stand with honor. Let’s restore America. God bless you, and God bless America.”

Meanwhile, civil rights leader, the Rev. Al Sharpton, organized a counter-rally called “Reclaim the Dream.” He accused Glenn Beck of disgracing Martin Luther King’s name.

Rev. Al Sharpton: “We wouldn’t disgrace today by allowing you to provoke us. No matter what you say, no matter what you do, we’re going to celebrate those that laid down their lives to give us a chance. This ain’t about them. This is about Dr. King.”