Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day

As a nation we will observe Monday, January 19th, 2015 as Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  First written into law by Pres. Ronald Reagan in 1983, it was first observed three years later.  At first, some states resisted observing the holiday as such, giving it alternative names or combining it with other holidays. It was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time in 2000.

Denver hosts the State of Colorado’s celebration.  Aurora is currently the only city to observe the day with a full week of activities and events commemorating the national holiday.  This is the 29th annual commemoration titled the Dream Endures, with events from the 11th through the 19th.

One of the events is a breakfast hosted by ACOF: Aurora Community of Faith.  A City of Aurora recognized group of leaders in faith with a voice and strong ties to city leaders.  This is one of the events where we, as Christians, take the opportunity to remind our city leaders, partners, and community of the faith of this pastor of God that led him to non-violent protests against inequality.

Now imagine being new to America, a refugee from a war-torn part of the world where voting and freedom of religion are distant & dangerous goals.

I had the opportunity to visit a local resource, the Asian Pacific Center, while a citizenship class was being taught.  As a few of us settled in the back of the room, the teacher continued with her lesson on the Bill of Rights.

She asked, “How many of you could speak about your faith in public?”  Three Hispanics raised their hand.  No one else did in a class of 17 students.

“How many of your countries did not allow you to speak out against your government?”  Hands flew up around the room.  The students looked around at classmates, not of their own country, nodding about the same struggle.

“How many of you were denied work because of your race, religion or even gender?” Again, more hands were raised than not.

Now imagine learning about Gandhi, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr. for the first time.  Sitting at the back of this class, I was reminded of what makes America great, yet I was uncomfortable and sad at how much we still struggle for equality and non-violence.

I don’t want to preach or be negative. I just ask that we continue to pray & act.