Monday Holidays

The third Monday of January is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The federal holiday is meant to commemorate his life and his work for civil rights. The date was chosen because King was born on January 15th in 1929. 

Photo: seattletimes.com

Soon after his assasination in 1968, a holiday to honor him was proposed but it did not become a federal holiday until 1983, when President Ronald Reagan made it official. However, many states did not celebrate the holiday and instead called it something else or combined it with other holidays. Finally, in 2000, all 50 states observed Martin Luther King Day. In 1994, President Bill Clinton signed legislation making MLK Day a day of service.

Photo: bostoncares.org

It was the Uniform Monday Holiday Act that determined when MLK Day would be. Congress passed that Act on June 28, 1968. Designating Mondays as federal holidays meant that three-day weekends were guaranteed for federal employees, but MLK Day is not considered a day off, but a day of volunteer service.