LOS ANGELES, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Civil rights leaders
and community activists on Friday called on AEG, promoters of the Michael
Jackson memorial at Staples Center in Los Angeles, to donate proceeds from the
event to children's charities.
"Donating the proceeds from the Jackson tribute to
children's charities and help organizations would be the best and most fitting
way to celebrate and pay homage to the humanitarian spirit of giving and help
that Jackson dedicated his life to," said Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable
President Earl Ofari Hutchinson.
Hutchinson joined the civil rights leaders in the
plea to AEG.
A news conference on the planned memorial was held on
Friday morning. Publicists for the Jackson family earlier indicated that 11,000
tickets would be given away for free and 9,000 guests would be invited to the
tribute.
It is not clear how the tribute might generate the
proceeds anticipated by Hutchinson and others.
Nevertheless, Hutchinson said: "The donations are
particularly timely and needed given the threat of massive cutbacks in funding
for children's health and welfare programs in California."
Representatives for the Jackson family confirmed on
Thursday that the memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Staples
Center, ending a week of speculation about where the public will be able to pay
its final respects to the eccentric singer.
Jackson, 50, was pronounced dead on June 25 at Ronald
Reagan Medical Center at the University of California in Los Angeles, about two
hours after he collapsed at his rented Holmby Hills estate.
Jackson was in Los Angeles rehearsing for 50 sold-out
concerts in London.
It was unclear where Jackson would be buried,
although reports resurfaced on Thursday that the singer would be buried at
Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills.
There was also a lingering question about who would
be footing the bill for the memorial service, which could potentially draw
hundreds of thousands of people to downtown Los Angeles and require a massive
police presence.
