President Ronald Regan, who was against naming a federal holiday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr., did sign it into law in 1983, four years after the first vote in Congress. It is now observed on the third Monday of January.
Campaign for Martin Luther King Day
King was the icon for non-violent activism during the civil rights movement, which successfully protested racial discrimination in both federal and state law. Dozens of laws banning racial discrimination have been passed since then. King was assassinated in1968 and the campaign to recognize him began almost immediately. However, it was many years before the holiday honoring his 1929 birth was passed.
Negative Arguments for Martin Luther King Day
The bill, which had been proposed years earlier, finally came to a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1979. However, it fell five votes short of the number needed for passage.
Arguments against the bill were that a paid holiday for federal workers would be too expensive and a holiday to honor a private citizen (King never held public office) would break with decades of tradition. Senator Jesse Helms questioned whether King was important enough to receive such an honor.
King Supporters Tap More Resources
The bill’s supporters turned to corporate America and the public to garner support. This was a strange decision, considering that big business would have been forecast to be against it. It is hard to tell if this strategy worked or if the credit should go to musician Stevie Wonder, who released a single titled “Happy Birthday” in 1980 to popularize the campaign. Six million signatures--in itself a record-breaking phenomena--were collected for a petition to Congress to pass the law.
President Ronald Reagan opposed the holiday, citing cost concerns. He actually threatened to veto the bill, but had little choice when Congress passed it with an overwhelming veto-proof majority (338 to 90 in the House of Representatives and 78 to 22 in the Senate).
Sen. John McCain Opposed Bill
Arizona’s Republican Senator John McCain voted against the creation of a holiday to honor King and later defended Arizona Republican Governor Eva Mecham’s rescinding of the state holiday in honor of King. After McCain’s opposition gathered irrepressible strength, he reversed his position and encouraged Arizona to recognize the holiday despite opposition from Mecham.
Following the failure of the 1990 proposition to recognize the holiday in Arizona, the National Football League moved Super Bowl XXVII from Tempe, Arizona to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA.
King Holiday Approved But in Limbo
President Reagan unwillingly signed the bill in 1983. The holiday, however, was not observed until 1986. Even so, the battle still wasn’t won.
South Carolina was the last state to recognize Martin Luther King Day as a federal holiday. It had given state employees the choice of either celebrating Martin Luther King Day or one of three Confederate holidays. Finally, in 2000, 17 years after a reticent President Ronald Reagan had signed approval of the national holiday recognizing Martin Luther King’s birthday, South Carolina Governor Jim Hodges signed a bill to make King‘s birthday an official state holiday.
This observance that is officially a federal holiday is still limping along. It is popular with non-profit organizations, but not necessarily so for corporate America and its composite manufacturing companies. In 2007, only about 35% of employers gave the day off to employees.
Sources:
“Citizen King Transcript,“ PBS (WGBH, Boston)
Proclamation 6401 - Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday
“Making of The King Holiday: A Chronology,” The King Center
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