Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a day dedicated to a man who spent his whole life fighting for civil rights, civil liberties and, among other things, the day when people of color to be seen as equals among peers. Fifteen years after his 1968 assassination, Ronald Reagen signed the holiday in to law and three years after that in 1986 it was first observed. Today it is now observed on the third Sunday of the year.
Education on King’s life and works has created awareness among some Penn Manor students.
“Martin Luther King, Jr. day is to celebrate him for equalizing different races,” said Genny Leonards, a Penn Manor junior.
“To celebrate freedom among everybody and for equal rights,” said Lindsey Thomas, reflecting on the holiday.
“It’s a day dedicated to a great man who changed the world,” said Penn Manor junior, Evan Singleton.
Although most people know why there’s a M.L.K. Jr. day, many have no idea how to celebrate it.
“I usually watch B.E.T.” responded Kaylin Madonna.
“Honestly nothing, but I watched a movie about African Americans before,” said Thomas.
“We’ll I am going out to dinner, but I been planning that.” said Lauren Richards.
There are local ways to celebrate the man and his dream. Starting from 7 to 9 a.m. Lancaster County Convention Center will be hosting the 22nd annual Martin Luther King Jr. day breakfast. There also will be a wide range of key speakers thoughout the city of Lancaster. The day is also going to be spent as a day of betterment and service for the community as many volunteers help with cleaning up the streets, repainting buildings and promoting racial tolerance.
August 28 of this year will mark the 37th anniversary of one the most well-known and talked about speeches in all of history, the “I have a Dream Speech.”
Some would ponder on whether or not King’s speech has been fulfilled or has been overfilled, the answer only the King would know.
By Robert Henry
Great story, Rob. Next year you should go out and volunteer on this day for a first-person story.
This article would be a lot of help to anyone wishing to celebrate the day, but who was unsure of where to start. I think opportunities such as these are important to get out to the public. Thank you for that.