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The History of Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated on the third Monday in January in every U.S. state. This holiday was created to honor the life and accomplishments of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., whose nonviolent efforts worked to abolish racial segregation and inequality in the 1960s. To celebrate, here is a list of facts about the origins of MLK Day, as well as some further reading from our own HubPages authors!
- Martin Luther King Jr. Day was first celebrated as a federal holiday in January of 1986, eight years after his assassination.
- Initially, it was proposed that MLK Day be celebrated on King's birthday, January 15th, but the Uniform Monday Holiday Act of 1968 required certain federal holidays to be on Mondays (to ensure workers would have longer weekends).
- The proposal for the federal holiday was
initially rejected by the U.S. House of Representatives, as opposers claimed it would be too expensive.
- In 1981, singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder helped raise awareness for the initiation of MLK Day by writing a song titled “
Happy Birthday” in honor of King. This song acknowledged King’s achievements and was used heavily in the holiday’s campaign.
- In 1987, Arizona’s governor Evan Mecham rescinded MLK Day, and in response, the National Football League threatened to
boycott Arizona by moving Super Bowl XXVII (set to be played in 1993) out of the state. After a revote failed to reinitiate the holiday, the game was relocated and played in Pasadena, California. After even more voting, Arizonians finally approved MLK Day in 1992, and the NFL allowed them to host a later Super Bowl in 1996.
- Though it was recognized as a federal holiday in 1986, MLK Day was not practiced by every U.S. state until the year 2000. Today, it serves as a time to pay tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. by volunteering, attending a march, or reflecting on the positive social changes he implemented in the United States.
To read more about Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., check out these articles:
Special thanks to authors
Paul Goodman and
Jessica B. Smith for these pieces!
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