The holiday was the result of a large-scale campaign headed by a number of activists. One of the most notable of these was musicianStevie Wonder, who released the single "Happy Birthday" to popularize the campaign in 1980 and hosted the Rally for Peace Press Conference in 1981. At the White House Rose Garden on November 2, 1983, US President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a federal holiday to honor King. It was observed for the first time on January 20, 1986.
Although the day is a federal holiday and a state holiday in all states, it is usually not observed by small private companies. Many large corporations are closed, but most small shops, restaurants, and grocery stores remain open. Additionally some schools and places of higher education are closed for classes; others remain open but may hold seminars or celebrations of Dr. King's message.
See also
Lee-Jackson-King day
External links
The King Center (http://www.thekingcenter.org/holiday/)
King decided to become a minister and delivered his first prepared sermon in his father's church, Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, at age 18 in the Summer of 1947.
King was ordained as a Baptist minister and received his B.A. degree in Sociology from Morehouse College in June at the age of 19.
King marched on the issue for open housing in Chicago and was stoned by an angry crowd on August 6, 1966.
King’s funeral services were held on April 9, 1968 at Ebenezer Baptist Church and on the campus of Morehouse College, with the President of the United State proclaiming a day of mourning and flags being flown at half-staff.
Alberta Williams King, the mother of Dr. MartinLutherKing, Jr., was shot and killed as she sat at the organ in the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.
King’s speech at the March on Washington in 1963, along with his acceptance speech of the Nobel Peace Prize, and his final sermon in Memphis are among his most famous utterances.
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