Until Martin Luther King Day are 38 days, ie 1 month and 7 days.
In 2024 Martin Luther King Day is on 15th January (Monday).
Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
There are only 3 figures that have their own national holidays in the USA: George Washington, Christopher Columbus and Martin Luther King Jr. Definitely all of these names are well-known all over the world, especially important for American people. The last name – Martin Luther King Jr. - is special though, for he was a private citizen, not a politician.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a federal holiday celebrated every year on the third Monday of January. The date is connected with King’s birthday – January 15. The holiday can also be called MLK Day or King Day.
Although not every state was initially favourable to a holiday like that, Martin Luther King’s impact on civil rights in the USA is undisputed. As a Nobel Peace Prize Laureat an American activist was fighting for racial equality, but all his actions were based on a nonviolence strategy. He was also a Christian minister and the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. After his assassination in 1968 it took over 30 years to make Martin Luther King Jr. Day a national holiday.
Today the third Monday of January means much more than just birthday of a very important person in the history of the USA. The holiday is the time to appreciate a long and difficult struggle for civil rights and equality. The date is also connected with other holidays in some states – for example Human Rights Day in Idaho or Civil Rights Day in Arizona and New Hampshire. Most corporations and Government departments are closed that day, so are some schools and colleges. Other educational establishments teach their pupils about Martin Luther King Jr. and his nonviolent civil rights campaigns. Every year many Americans decide to become volunteers that day, encouraged by King’s memorable speech - “I Have a Dream”.
Did you know?
At the age of 15 Martin Luther King Jr. passed the entrance exam for Morehouse College. The head teacher, Benjamin Mays, had a huge impact on a young King because of his prior meeting with Mahatma Gandhi. It was definitely one of the factors that pushed Martin Luther King Jr. towards his actions, and the idea of nonviolence preached by Gandhi became one of the most important postulates of King’s activity.