Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2026

[EddMarkStarr]

During the 1960's my school friends and I were fascinated by the thought of landing astronauts on the moon,
paying little attention to the people around us who didn't think at all.

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2026!

 

[rareboy]

It is a shame that the US has drifted away from his ideals and that his day seems to have received virtually no notice at all.

 

[EddMarkStarr]

My dream was to be able to chat with people around the world, Dr. King might say mission accomplished.

 

[me203]

the people around us who didn't think at all.

Still a real peoblem. It may just be me getting older, but part of me thinks this problem is getting worse.

 

[cityboy-stl]

It is a shame that the US has drifted away from his ideals and that his day seems to have received virtually no notice at all.

It's getting a lot of local notice here.

 

[NotHardUp1]

It is a shame that the US has drifted away from his ideals and that his day seems to have received virtually no notice at all.

There was a parade here and celebrations over the weekend. It did not go unobserved.

 

[unloadonme]

Does MLK Day mean a day off work?

 

[cityboy-stl]

Does MLK Day mean a day off work?

Government offices, Post Offices, Banks etc. are closed. Stores and most businesses are open, though.

 

[EddMarkStarr]

Still a real peoblem. It may just be me getting older, but part of me thinks this problem is getting worse.

The old saying used to be: "we're all in the same game, but we're not all using the same playbook".
It does hurt when I meet people half my age who have no joy or optimism to share.

The future Dr. King told stories about had a place for everyone - and Yes, attitude counts!

 

[EddMarkStarr]

My strongest memories of Dr. King are not from television - his best speeches were recorded on radio.

Black-owned radio stations across the United States formed a "community forum" of news and events of interest to a unique audience.
Black churches were key to having Dr. King speak directly to Black Americans and these speeches were recorded by radio for later broadcasts.

The Dr. King that spoke in churches was very different from the television speaker. To Black Americans, Dr. King stressed personal responsibility, education and fellowship.

I am forever grateful to WRAP Radio in Norfolk, Virginia, for carrying many of Dr. King's Sunday sermons as he traveled across the country to speak with groups large and small.

 

[Harke the Boeotarch]

When my flight back from the U.S. to The Netherlands was delayed a few years back I spent about twelve hours in Atlanta, visiting the ( all-night sauna and the) King Center and walking to the outside of one of (?) MLK houses.

It was interesting to see so many types of black folks that I only knew from television.

 

[EddMarkStarr]

When my flight back from the U.S. to The Netherlands was delayed a few years back I spent about twelve hours in Atlanta, visiting the ( all-night sauna and the) King Center and walking to the outside of one of (?) MLK houses.

It was interesting to see so many types of black folks that I only knew from television.

I remember a radio broadcast where Dr. King was responding to questions from a church congregation. He always reminded people that the quality of life improves when we each take responsibility for the conduct of our lives. "Don't blame others for failing to fix problems we created for ourselves. If black communities need fixing then the black community needs to fix them".

 

[EddMarkStarr]

I thought I should close with a mention of how different my childhood was at the end on the 1950's. and the start of the 1960's.


When I was in elementary school in 1962, I was in an all-black neighborhood school - desegregation didn't happen until 1965. And among the black kids, nothing was more important than being good at Croquet. Every family had a Croquet set and kids with no co-ordination were laughed at and picked on. Parents and children both played Croquet together and anyone not good at the game quickly found themselves on the sideline.


The other option was Badminton - Badminton was the backup option for kids that were awful at Croquet. Badminton was as common as kindergarten kids playing "Ring-Around-the-Rosie". Meanwhile, all the black women excelled at afternoon tea, with cookies, cakes and served on fine china. My childhood was filled with lively lawn games played while refined ladies watch while sipping tea.


My childhood was so different from what most people expect that there are times when it felt more like England than the United States. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. also noticed the close relationship between east coast black Americans and the United Kingdom.

 

[rareboy]

When my flight back from the U.S. to The Netherlands was delayed a few years back I spent about twelve hours in Atlanta, visiting the ( all-night sauna and the) King Center and walking to the outside of one of (?) MLK houses.

It was interesting to see so many types of black folks that I only knew from television.

I fear for MLK's houses and museums under Trump.

Apropos of your sauana experience, there were a couple of delicious black guys I would hook up with in our apartment building sauna in Toronto, where we had a very international black population. yum.