Got MLK?
CRAZY COMMONWEALTH:
Resistance to the observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day has been expressed by the opposition to and supporters of King, alike. Signed into law by Ronald Regan in 1983, the holiday was first observed in 1986. However, it was not until 2000 that all 50 states officially recognized the holiday.
Why? Because there are places like the Commonwealth of Virginia, who are just plain cr/lazy. Until 2000, they celebrated Lee-Jackson-King Day.
Seriously. Like, Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson.
I’ll give them this: they began celebrating Lee (a Virgina native, whose birthday is on January 19th) in 1889. Then, in 1904, they added Jackson’s birthday bonanza (January 21st) to the mix.
But I have a hard time believing that the 70′s were really so crazy that by the mid-eighties, adding King to the lineup seemed logical.
Since 2000, they’ve gone back to just celebrating Lee-Jackson Day (the Friday prior to MLK Monday). So maybe that was the plan all along? A more than fifteen-year ploy for a four-day weekend! (fo’ next time: furloughs are quicker and just as weird)
PEEK OF THE WEEK:
Here on Maui, it stands that folks will celebrate beyond that of mere (or incongruent) observance. At 8:30am, the African Americans on Maui group will convene the Stone of Hope Monument (200 S. High St.) for a silent march to Café Marc Aurel (28 N. Market St.), where the event will continue with “speakers African dancing and drumming and entertainment” until noon.
Make a day of it with a stroll (or roll) down Main to Kaahumanu Ave., to check in with the African American Heritage Foundation of Maui; who will meet at Maui Community College (310 W. Kaahumanu Ave.) for their “Peace & Justice March” to Ho’aloha Park (1 E. Kaahumanu Ave.).
Not only is the foundation serving a free meal to attendees, they are simultaneously conducting a drive for the Maui Food Bank. So in addition to preparing for the day by packing mats, hats, sunscreen and shoes, please be generous in your donation of non-perishable goods. While the march begins promptly at 11am, be sure to meet at MCC by 10:30. The event’s esteemed guest speaker, Reverend Robert Graetz, counted Rosa Parks among his close personal friends, authored Montgomery – A White Preacher’s Memoir (1991, republished in 1999 as A White Preacher’s Memoir: The Montgomery Bus Boycott), and who—along with his wife Jeannie (who will also be attending)—played an integral role in Alabama’s Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 – 56. African Americans on Maui: 808-280-1394 / African American Heritage Foundation: 808-879-5313
FO’ MO’:
Cool Blog Brethren: http://entrylevelliving.wordpress.com/2009/01/19/reflecting-on-mlk-day/
