Monday, January 19th, is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, celebrated as a national holiday since the mid-80’s. I’ve worked for organizations who considered it a formal holiday and those that did not. 
But whether you are working or not on Monday, there are many opportunities in the coming days to celebrate the life of the great civil rights leader. There are educational forums, community breakfasts, and musical events. I have attended many events over the years and always come away with a renewed commitment to do my part to end the injustices in our society.
I saw the film “Selma” last weekend and highly recommend it. Why did thousands of people march from Selma to Montgomery in 1965 – to ensure that African Americans could exercise their basic legal right to vote. The movie may be hard to watch in certain scenes, but we have to recognize it as part of our collective history. The violence against black people really happened as depicted. But that was a different time in our history – it was 50 years ago. Continue reading
