Nearly 20 years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner, the United States established Martin Luther King Jr. Day, commonly known as MLK Day.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated on the third Monday of every January. According to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture, MLK Day was designated as a national day of service where all Americans are encouraged to participate in volunteer efforts to better their communities.
Alexis Major, junior business management major, has been to numerous MLK Day events around Coastal Carolina University and hopes that more organizations will participate in honoring his legacy.
“Celebrating MLK Day is important for everyone and not just African Americans, because he was inspirational and empowering. Celebrating his legacy is a reminder that there was someone fighting for you,” Major said.
The creation of a national holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr. did not come without sacrifice. King began his fight for civil rights during the Montgomery bus boycott, where his arrest and imprisonment led him to continue his fight for civil rights on a national stage.
Following the bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, King led a series of non-violent protests through organized sit-ins. During these peaceful protests, police in Birmingham, Alabama deployed water jets and police dogs against protesters, drawing nationwide attention.
During the sit-in campaign King was once again arrested, but in doing so spoke words that are still used as the backbone for protestors today.
“There is nothing greater in all the world than freedom. It’s worth going to jail for. It’s worth losing a job for. It’s worth dying for,” King said following his arrests.
In 1963, King, partnered with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), led the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
