Remember Martin Luther King, Jr.

As many people know, January 18, 2021 was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Since 1971, cities and various states designated Martin Luther King Jr. Day on the third Monday of each January.

Later in 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation making it a national holiday.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Baptist minister and most notably known as a Civil Rights activist in the 1950’s and 1960’s in Georgia. However, he was not just a person that stirred the hearts or emotions ofhis congregation or supporters but changed the landscape of how people were treated equally amongst one another.

Though he only lived a mere 39 years on this earth, his lasting effect on how Americans treat one another was quickly changing for the better. However, in recent years King would have shook his head at the violence and social dismay that has made further change questionable.

Because he was assassinated over 50 years ago, many people may only remember the “I Have A Dream” speech from news clips, in what was a speech during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial.

The speech had put intense political pressure on President John F. Kennedy’s administration in advancing civil rights legislation before Congress.

King was named Man of the Year by TIME Magazine in 1963 and in 1964, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. King was the youngest man ever to receive that honor.

King was revered so much that the National Park Service dedicated a marble pedestal to commemorate the location in which King gave the famous speech.

In 2011, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial was dedicated near the Potomoc River Basin in Washington that will forever remind Americans of how impressionable King was on this country. The question remains on whether or not America has progressed or regressed back to the times ofthe civil rights era, in which strife and discord was rampant.

For older Americans who distinctly remember those days of strife, they may see some similarities between the unrest of the 60s and the current times.

However, no one has come to the forefront of the discussion on eliminating racial inequities, that certain portions of the American melting pot maintain, as King did some six and seven decades ago.

Most children may not fully understand who Martin Luther King Jr. really is or what he did. Nonetheless, they should realize that the man not only shared dreams and visions for a better America, but he also took measures to attempt to quell the hatred among people.

King’s inspirational words live with many even to this day. For a man that is remembered for having a dream, the man also told us “that in the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends” amongst other wise and humble words.