Today, we commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and remember his belief in the “great chain of humanity,” connecting neighborhoods and communities across the globe.
#OnThisDay, the 40th anniversary of the King national holiday, we honor his message of global altruism, marked by redemptive compassion and transformative service among all.
The power of Dr. King’s vision of a “brotherhood of humanity” inspired the fifteen-year struggle to establish his birthday as a national holiday.” Led by social and political leaders, including then-President Jimmy Carter, Rep. John Conyers, Coretta Scott King, and singer/songwriter Stevie Wonder among others—more than 300,000 American citizens signed petitions supporting the introduction of bills and legislation that ultimately culminated in the creation of the holiday.
King, who served as spokesman for the Montgomery Bus Boycott that integrated Montgomery, Alabama bus lines, later took the reins of leadership of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and became a leading voice of the civil rights movement. As a theologian and scholar, Dr. King linked social equality and justice to spiritual morality, biblical mercy, and Christian compassion.
His approach of non-violent protests and economic boycotts brought international attention to the inequities of segregation laws that had shaped American life under the doctrine of “separate but equal.” In 1964, Dr. King was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize and in his acceptance speech proclaimed that “unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.”
In 1994, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was officially set aside as a day of service where individuals and groups engage in community service. How will you honor Dr. King’s legacy of service today?
Learn 5 surprising facts about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: s.si.edu/4qP6bXm
#APeoplesJourney #ANationsStory #MLKDay
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 1963. Johnson Publishing Company Archive. Courtesy J. Paul Getty Trust and Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Photograph by G. Marshall Wilson. Made possible by the Ford Foundation, J. Paul Getty Trust, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and Smithsonian Institution.
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