Photo by specimenlife.

Good morning, Washington. Yesterday, tens of thousands of people descended on the National Mall to celebrate the delayed dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. Most people, including keynote speaker President Barack Obama, appeared to have an enjoyable time; others, like civil rights activist Cornel West, were especially moved by the occasion. After the dedication ceremony, West was arrested on the steps of the Supreme Court along with 19 other people who were protesting the influence of corporations on politics.

Speaking of Dedication Speeches: Mayor Vince Gray was also one of the featured speakers at the King Memorial dedication, and he used the chance to once again stump for D.C. voting rights. “We gloriously honor Dr. King’s legacy and his dream, but sadly for the 601,000 residents of the District of Columbia that dream remains unfulfilled,” Gray said. President Obama didn’t address the issue in his remarks. Of course, we have to imagine that Obama’s lack of acknowledgement probably wasn’t the worst part of Gray’s weekend.

Taxed Enough Already?: It’s a question that many people have asked — shouldn’t the District’s push against government “tyranny” actually appeal to the values of the Tea Party? That’s what the Times tries to suss out — and, in short, it seems they’re taking the side of strict constructionism. “I just think the District is constitutionally significant. It is mentioned by name in the Constitution, which makes it unique,” said Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC). Rep. Louie Gohmert, whose attempt to introduce a concealed carry law for the District last week was rejected in committee, also told the paper that, while he believed the District’s situation was “really unfair,” he’ll attempt to pass the concealed carry law again as a stand-alone bill.

Airport Shuttles Ailing: Are you concerned about the state of the airport shuttles at Dulles? Yeah, I wasn’t either, but apparently we should be: the Post reports that drivers of the shuttles are very worried about the various ailments of the vehicles. One driver even said that “he recently had a steering wheel come off in his hands.” Of course, both the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and the contractor that operate the buses insist that there isn’t any issue —

Briefly Noted: D.C. police investigating homicides on 1900 block of I Street NE, 1100 block of Stevens Road SE…Group of 80 search MoCo parks for missing boy…Woman stabbed in Bowie Target feels “blessed” her injuries weren’t worse…Maryland legislature takes up redistricting in special session…Woman charged in Mannassas arson which displaced 23 people…Occupy D.C.’s got protest songs…Welcome to town, transit buffs.

This Day in DCist: In 2009, one Post report thought that D.C. schools operated on a six-day schedule; in 2007, Adrian Fenty ordered that taxis in the District switch to time and distance meters.