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In 1970, Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday, January 15 was initially made a holiday by a number of US states and cities to honor the civil rights icon. Later, in the 1983 legislation, the third Monday in January was passed as a federal holiday. It was later implemented nationwide in 1986.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a national holiday in the United States, honoring his achievements. He was a Baptist minister who attempted to end racial segregation by the use of nonviolent means. During a bus boycott called by the African Americans in Alabama’s Montgomery in 1955, King first rose to national prominence.
He was the founder of the 1957 Southern Christian Leadership Conference and led a march on Washington in 1963. King also played a significant role in helping pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was signed by President Lyndon Johnson and outlawed discrimination in public places, employment, and other facilities.
Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential and inspiring leaders who fought for African American civil rights during the 1960s. On April 4, 1968, King was assassinated.
The legislation for a holiday was proposed by Congress in 1968, but it faced major opposition based on political and racial grounds, which inhibited it from getting passed. However, in 1983, legislation was passed in which January’s third Monday was made a federal holiday.
The day is now known as Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which people usually celebrate by holding marches and parades as well as speeches from civil rights activists and political leaders.
Opposition to Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a new federal holiday
When the bill was passed, there was still opposition from different Congress members, who cited a variety of reasons. Bill Goodling (R-PA), a former Republican Representative, mentioned the cost involved in the new federal holiday as an opposing reason.
In the argument, he said that the $18 million that had to be paid to the employees by the government to give them a new day off. This would leave an even larger deficit for the taxpayers.
Goodling added:
“I voted against this measure when it was before the House, not because I am a Republican and not because I do not care about civil rights and black votes. I vote against all spending measures that are a threat to the nation's economy because I promised my constitutents I would do so.”
Senator Jesse Helmes (R-NC), who delayed voting against the bill to make way for MLK Day, argued that people should not celebrate King with a separate nationally recognized holiday because he was a communist. Helmes argued:
"I think most Americans would feel that the participation of Marxists in the planning and direction of any movement taints that movement at the outset. And Dr. King's action-oriented Marxism, about which he was cautioned by the leaders of this country, including the president at that time, is not compatible with the concepts of this country.”
Even after Reagan signed the bill that established MLK Day, not everyone completely followed suit. In 1990, Arizona was removed from the position of host state for the 1993 Super Bowl because the state did not recognize the third Monday in January as MLK Day.
In 2000, there were still disputes regarding whether or not Martin Luther King Jr. should be celebrated on a particular day. For instance, in Connecticut, to ensure that all municipalities are recognizing the holiday, former Governor John Rowland signed legislation.
However, in recent times, such disputes are rarely heard of. But these disputes were a part of the history that led to Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Ahead of MLK Day, a 22-foot bronze statue called The Embrace was unveiled at Bostom Common on January 13 this year to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King’s mutual love and support.
Artist Hank Willis Thomas found inspiration for the sculpture in a photograph of the couple where they shared a warm embrace after King was announced the Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1964.
