From Congress to Stevie Wonder: The story behind Martin Luther King Day

"Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!" Martin Luther King, in a powerful speech on April 3, 1968, exclaimed. As if he knew it, the activist was murdered in the early hours of the next day by James Earl Ray, who shot him while he stood on the balcony of his hotel in Memphis, Tennessee.

By age 39, King had led hundreds of marches, achieved historic legislative gains for African Americans, and delighted millions with his eloquent rhetoric. He dedicated each day to pursuing a single goal: that his four little children would one day live in a nation where they "will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

Nearly 55 years later, Dr. King's vision took great strides toward equal opportunity between blacks and whites, but above all, that vision was realized in one of its founding pillars: equality before the law. Although there are, unfortunately, racist people in the United States, they are the exception to the rule. Institutional racism and discrimination no longer exist, as they existed in the pages of the Jim Crow laws.

The election of Barack Obama as president (twice) and a photo of the current Congress could be enough evidence of social change. In the words of former President Bill Clinton, the historic activist would be "pleased" with the progress of the United States.

In order not to forget his message and keep it present at the national level once a year, since 1986, Martin Luther King Day has been celebrated every third Monday in January. Although it was established as a national holiday, the idea was to celebrate people doing everything but staying home. It is a day designed to help others, full of service and volunteering. The tradition took root in another famous line from King, "What are you doing for others?"

The story behind Martin Luther King Day

Some states, like Illinois, were ahead of the country and introduced the holiday a little earlier. In 1979, aiming to unite all 50 stars in celebration, Representative John Conyers (D-MI ) and Senator Edward Brooke (R-MA) introduced a bill.

Despite the enthusiasm, the project fell short by five votes in the House. The motives? The detractors cited the economic cost of the holiday and doubts about a national holiday intended for a private citizen (who never held public office). President Ronald Reagan himself looked skeptically at the national holiday option, adding to the concerns of the first group.

Neither slow nor lazy, the King Center took advantage of the momentum to gain more citizen and business support for its cause. Six million signatures and Stevie Wonder were enough for Capitol Hill to decide to revisit the legislation. The singer even composed the song "Happy Birthday" to put pressure on the Senate. "I just never understood how a man who died for good could not have a day that would be set aside for his recognition," he sang alongside widow Coretta Scott in 1983.

That same year, the bill, now authored by Katie Hall, passed the House of Representatives 338-90 (242-4 in the House Democratic Caucus and 89-77 in the Republican Caucus). The Senate voted on October 19 with a favorable result of 78 to 22 (41-4 in the Democratic Caucus and 37-18 in the Republican Caucus). With both margins exceeding the veto floor, Reagan took the presidential pen and signed the law, which went into effect in 1986, accompanied by King's relatives.

"We are here today to honor a man who dedicated his life to the pursuit of a dream. And now, we'll sign the proclamation honoring the 59th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr.'s birth", said the president at the White House.

Of course, not all states were happy with the holiday, so they appealed to combine this new holiday with other festivities. This ended in 2000 when South Carolina became the last state to recognize the day as a paid holiday for all state employees.

This January 15, 2024, all 50 states once again celebrate the legacy of Dr. King, whose ideas, although peaking in the 1960s, can be found in a much older document. In his famous 1963 speech, Martin Luther King dared to remind his compatriots of one of the fundamental pillars of his founding as a country, written in the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."