It’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Day or MLK Day. As an English teacher, I designated a day to analyze his “I Have a Dream,” which never tired me. I loved it.
But in writing an article recently on the federal holiday, I learned that it’s meant to be a day of service. Every American is encouraged to volunteer on this day. I sure wish I had known that as a teacher, and I sure wish I had known that as a young person too.
It’s still not a bad time to remember MLK too, and not just the impact that he made, but a reflection on what he had to fight for. It’s important to remember that the rights we have are all rights that were hard-earned.
Here’s a few things to think about on this MLK Day:
My young students wouldn’t realize how long ago the Civil Rights movement was, so we did some math together - How long ago was 1955, when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger? The answer is 71 years. Surprise! That’s not very long ago is it? Afterward, MLK still had to lead a peaceful march for 381 days, known as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, in order to influence the Supreme Court to declare segregation on public buses unconstitutional.
In 1958, King survived an attempted assassination, after he was stabbed in the chest by a woman at a book signing in Harlem. (Talk about a Karen, am I right?) But what’s most interesting about this event is that it only reaffirmed to MLK the importance of non-violence, after which he stated, “The experience of these last few days has deepened my faith in the relevance of the spirit of nonviolence if necessary social change is peacefully to take place.”
While the campaign for King’s holiday began just four days after he was assassinated, the legislation to honor him took nearly 20 years to first be observed in 1986. This shows both how difficult it was to pass legislation honoring an African-American Civil Rights leader and just how long it can take to accomplish literally anything. At least when we’re exercising those checks and balances.
And one more thing. That little speech “I Have a Dream” of his led to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, for a movement that had begun a decade earlier.
I like the idea of putting ourselves back on the ground in our neighborhoods. But I think a lot of people think they have to do something really big or official in order to volunteer, but as I told my students, all you have to do is help and be kind. Including something as small as smiling and saying hello to the people you pass.
Finding ways to give back doesn’t have to be a once-a-year event. “The time is always right to do what is right,” said MLK. At the beginning of 2026, let MLK’s legacy inspire you to do a little more of the right thing all year long.
Write on,
Ashley