?Star Wars? director George Lucas has donated $1 million to help build a memorial to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in Washington.

The landscaped memorial on the National Mall would lie near the Lincoln Memorial, where King gave his famous ?I have a dream? speech in 1963, reports BBC.

?The ideals and principles for which Dr. King fought have never been forgotten and are as relevant today as they were 40 years ago,? said Lucas in a statement Thursday, adding that a memorial ensures King’s message will endure for future generations.

The filmmaker will also co-host the Nov. 19 ?Dream Dinner? in San Francisco, which will raise funds and awareness for the MLK National Memorial Project Foundation.

More than $40 million of the $100 million needed to build the monument has been raised so far by the foundation.

The project has attracted the support of many notables, including former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and Jack Valenti, former president of the Motion Picture Association of America.

The U.S. Congress authorized the memorial in 1996, and groundbreaking is scheduled for late next year on a four-acre site.

Lucas, who is currently working on a long-awaited “Indiana Jones” sequel, also supports other causes including his own educational foundation to help bring about a technology-enriched educational system. Premiere screenings for the Star Wars movies have raised $5.6 million for charity.






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