California Pays Homage to Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, but the federal holiday (established in 1986) honors him on the third Monday in January. In addition to National Park Service Free Admission Day on Jan.16, 2017, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebrations in California take place in Fresno, Inglewood, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Riverside, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco.
Throughout the state streets, libraries, buildings and memorials are named in the honor of the civil rights leader who promoted nonviolent civil disobedience. King helped organize the 1963 March on Washington, where he delivered his famous speech, “I Have a Dream.” His eloquence, oratory skills and activism were recognized with the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. The Baptist minister was assassinated on April 4, 1968 at age 39.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute and King Papers Project at Stanford University (kinginstitute.stanford.edu) was established in cooperation with Coretta Scott King as one of only a few large-scale research ventures focusing on an African American.
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