Initially, the memorial’s proposed location in MLK park sparked backlash when some saw a conflict between the civil rights activist’s advocacy for nonviolence and the bloodshed of a controversial war. Sustaita reassured Waco citizens that the group was not trying to glorify the war but rather to recognize the sacrifice of those involved. In the end, the Waco Citizens for a Vietnam Veterans Association, with the City of Waco, settle on an area on the west bank of the Brazos River near the intersection of University Parks Drive and Washington Avenue.