Eyebrows are being raised because Oprah Winfrey refused to contribute to the Martin Luther King monument in Washington D.C.
Twice...
From NY Daily News
Oprah Winfrey reveres Martin Luther King Jr., but how does she feel about the civil rights leader's Washington memorial?
The media phenomenon, who once said her TV career would not have been possible without King's achievements, is conspicuously missing from the memorial foundation's "Dream Team" of supporters and major contributors - and we hear she declined more than one request for a donation.
On Sunday, thousands flocked to the National Mall in Washington to see President Obama dedicate the three-story statue of King, carved from granite by Chinese sculptor Lei Yixin. Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin sang "Precious Lord," and Stevie Wonder, Sheryl Crow and James Taylor also performed.
According to the foundation's website (mlkmemorial.org), $6 million remains to be raised for the $120 million project, which has dozens of A-list celebrities behind it.
Among those on the foundation's "Dream Team" of boldface names who contributed their "time and resources to promote and support the memorial" are Muhammad Ali and his daughter Laila Ali, Dr. Maya Angelou, Whoopi Goldberg , Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Carlos Santana, Angela Bassett, Samuel L. Jackson and Chris Brown.
The 57-year-old Winfrey is not on the list, nor is the billionaire's OWN cable network among the media companies featured in the "Major Contributors" section. They include Disney, CBS, BET Networks, Sony and Paramount.
An insider tells us Winfrey's camp was approached for $1 million and, later, $500K, but has yet to contribute.
A spokeswoman for the foundation declined to comment.
Winfrey's spokesman referred us to Chance Patterson, senior vice president of corporate affairs for her Harpo Productions. He did not respond by deadline
