Honoring MLK, Jr.

Monday is the day that we officially honor the birth of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was actually born on January 15, 1929. Four days after his assassination on April 4, 1968, a bill was introduced to make his birthday a legal holiday. It took 15 years for the bill to pass, with President Ronald Reagan signing the legislation. Some states only adopted the holiday in conjunction with existing state holidays, making for some rather interesting combinations: in Virginia, from 1984 to 2000, it was known as Lee-Jackson-King Day. Also in 2000, Utah became the last state to recognize King, by renaming its Human Rights Day, and South Carolina became the last state to make the day a paid holiday.

Included on the Favorite Quotes page are a number of them from Dr. King. The Virginian-Pilot has more in its editorial today, in which they focus on non-violence. We honor Dr. King when we remember what he said and what he stood for. Not just today, but every day.

UPDATE: The governor’s proclamation is here. Also, there are a couple of older posts you may enjoy: MLK: Remaining Awake Through A Great Revolution and MLK Memorial Speech