On Martin Luther King Day 2025, the Shirley Chisholm Project reflects on the struggle that was necessary to establish this day as a national holiday.

In the above 1970 photo, Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm accepts a petition to designate Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a national holiday. After a hard-fought campaign against racist opposition, it was made official in 1983 and first observed in 1986. Even after it was written into law, several state governments sought to subvert the holiday by pairing it with recognition of Confederate generals. MLK was not fully recognized by all 50 state governments until the year 2000.

[Photo: NY Daily News].

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.