Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a federal holiday and day of service in the United States created to honor the life and legacy of the renowned civil rights leader, who advocated the use of nonviolent means to protest segregation and other forms of racial injustice. The most influential of African American civil rights leaders during the 1960s, he was instrumental in securing the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He was assassinated on April 4, 1968 at the age of 39. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was observed for the first time on January 20, 1986, following its passage into law. The holiday is observed annually on the third Monday in January.