The long struggle to establish Martin Luther King Jr. Day

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. He chose that location in part to honor President Abraham Lincoln as “a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today.” Now, millions of people honor King in the same way.

On the third Monday of January — close to King’s Jan. 15 birthday — federal, state and local governments, institutions and various industries recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day. For some, the holiday is just that — time off from work or school. But, King’s family and others carrying on his legacy of equality, justice and non-violent protest want Americans to remember that this holiday is really about helping others.

While it is now a time-honored tradition, the establishment of the holiday had a prolonged, difficult path to acceptance.

How the idea for MLK day began

The idea to establish a national holiday for the civil rights icon arose as the nation was plunged into grief. U.S. Democratic Rep. John Conyers of Michigan, one of the longest-serving members of Congress known for his liberal stance on civil rights, proposed legislation to recognize King four days after his assassination outside a motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968.

Supporters knew it would not be easy. King, who was 39 years old at the time, was a polarizing figure to half the country even before his death, said Lerone Martin, director of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University. Polls conducted by the Washington Post and the New York Times indicated most Americans did not trust King or thought he was too radical because of his speeches on poverty, housing and against the Vietnam War.

“People say that King is moving too fast after 1965 and basically ‘Hey, you got the Voting Rights bill done. That’s enough,’” Martin said.

The Congressional Black Caucus, founded by Conyers, tried to bring the legislation up for a vote for the next 15 years. Among the Republican rebuttals — public holidays don’t apply to private citizens, King was a communist or King was a womanizer. In the meantime, his widow, Coretta Scott King, kept lobbying for it. Musician Stevie Wonder even released a song, “Happy Birthday,” to rally support.

So, what changed?

By the 1980s, the social and cultural climate in the U.S. had shifted and the public was reflecting on racial progress, Martin said. Most Americans now were also regretting the Vietnam War. Supporters, meanwhile, were still calling for federal holiday status.

In 1983, about 20 years after King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, legislation for a Martin Luther King Jr. Day on the third Monday of January cleared Congress and President Ronald Reagan signed it.

States held back as activists stepped up

Reagan’s signing did not lead other Republicans to follow. It would be 17 more years until all 50 states observed it. Most of the foot-dragging came from the South — except for Arizona. Then in 1987, Gov. Evan Mecham rescinded his predecessor’s executive order enacting a state holiday in Arizona.

“He said ‘Black people don’t need a holiday. Y’all need jobs,’” recalled Dr. Warren H. Stewart Sr., senior pastor at First Institutional Baptist Church in Phoenix. “That started the war.”

Stewart launched a group to lead “people of all colors and all persuasions, faiths and parties” in protest marches. Entertainers including Wonder canceled Arizona events. Companies moved conventions. The tipping point was the loss of hosting the Super Bowl. In 1992, Arizona became the first state where voter initiative reinstated the King holiday.

Supporters took a victory lap the next MLK Day with a packed arena concert attended by Wonder and other artists. Even Rosa Parks was there. Stewart remembers speaking to the crowd.

“What I said there — and it still applies today — we’ve won the holiday but the holiday is a symbol of liberty and justice for all and we must move from symbol to substance,” he said.

South Carolina was the final holdout until 2000. But, it was without the backing of the civil rights groups because it also allowed for a Confederate Memorial Day.

A ‘day on, not a day off’

Martin Luther King Jr. Day’s reach has only grown in its 42 years.

It’s the only federal holiday where you take a “day on, not a day off.” In 1994, President Bill Clinton signed into law Congressman John Lewis and Sen. Harris Wofford’s legislation making it a National Day of Service.

Just about every major city and suburb has some revelry the weekend before, including parades, street festivals and concerts. The various service projects run the gamut — community clean-up, packing food boxes, donating blood.

AmeriCorps, the federal agency that deploys volunteers to serve communities around the nation, has distributed $1.5 million in grants to 200 nonprofits, faith-based groups and other organizations for projects. CEO Michael Smith estimates there have been hundreds of projects involving hundreds of thousands of people for MLK day in recent years. Engagement seems to be expanding.

“You know, any given day I see another project that has nothing to do with us,” said Smith, who has served in President Joe Biden’s administration. “What’s so important about the King holiday is not only the service that’s going to happen, but how it creates a spark for people to think about how maybe they’re going to serve all year long.”

That’s something King’s daughter, the Rev. Bernice King and CEO of the King Center in Atlanta, desires as well. She wishes people would do more than “quote King, which we love to do.” They need to do good work and commit daily “to embrace the spirit of nonviolence.”

Martin also thinks it’s important to learn about the man himself. He finds excitement in seeing people read or hear about the Nobel Peace Prize winner. But, nothing compares to taking in King’s own writings such as his 1963 “Letter from the Birmingham Jail,” he added.

“We can arm ourselves with his ideals,” Martin said. “We can continue to have a conversation with him — not just on one day but actually throughout the year.”

Follow @ktar923