The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday is celebrated nationwide on the third Monday in January each year. The holiday was first introduced to congress by Representative John Conyers (D-MI) just four days after the assassination of Dr. King. On June 26, 1968, the recently widowed, Coretta Scott King established the King Center in Atlanta, GA to maintain the legacy of her late husband. It was not until 1983 that the legislation introduced by John Conyers, Jr. would be signed in to law making Martin Luther King, Jr. Day a federal holiday. The holiday was not celebrated in every state in America until the year 2000.

The fight for national observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a significant example of why it is incumbent upon Black people to control the narrative of our culture. The persistent practice of Coretta Scott King and the many Black people and Black organizations in America is actually how the King holiday was cemented into the culture of Black people in the United States. It was the relentless pursuit of John Conyers, Jr. and many other Blacks in America that garnered congressional approval of the recognition of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and made it a federal holiday.

Click this link to watch the PBS presentation about how MLK, Jr. Day became a federal holiday.

Origin of Everything | How Did Martin Luther King Jr. Get a Holiday? | Season 1 | Episode 16 | PBS