Government Resources on Martin Luther King: Home
Overview
Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Observed the third Monday in January, celebrating the life and legacy of the Civil Rights leader, as well as a commitment to service.
On August 27, 1984, President Reagan established a commission (98 Stat. 1473 ) to assist in the first observance of the Federal legal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr., and on January 18, 1986, President Reagan signed Proclamation 5431 (100 Stat. 4396), marking the first observance of his birthday a national holiday.
On August 23, 1994, President Clinton signed the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday and Service Act (108 Stat. 1565), expanding the mission of the holiday as a day of community service, interracial cooperation and youth anti-violence initiatives. In 1999, Title 4, United States Code, (113 Stat. 1285), was amended to add the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday to the list of days on which the flag should be displayed.
Source: MLK Day of Service, GovInfo.gov
Speeches
- Cornell University Library - Martin Luther King, Jr. Resources: Films/SpeechesThis guide is divided into 10 different categories. Each is designed to give the researcher ideas on how to track down material relating to King's legacy. In the first category a rare video clip from a 1967 interview with King on the civil rights movement
- Freedom's Ring "I Have a Dream" SpeechFreedom's Ring is Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, annotated. Here you can compare the written and spoken speech, explore multimedia images, listen to movement activists and uncover historical context.
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Quotes and SpeechesA list of iconic Martin Luther King, Jr. quotes, plus how to listen to his speeches and read his work.
- Martin Luther King Jr. Acceptance Speech of 1964 Nobel Peace PrizeWatch and read Martin Luther King’s Acceptance Speech, on the occasion of the award of the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, 10 December 1964
- NY State Education Department - Martin Luther King, Jr. SpeechOn September 12, 1962, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a speech in New York City to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. The New York State Museum has the only known audio recording of this speech. For the first time, the public can listen to the speech in an online exhibition on the New York State Museum's website.
Essential Government Resources
- Our Documents The Our Documents initiative is a cooperative effort among National History Day, The National Archives and Records Administration, and USA Freedom Corps.
Also Try
- HeinOnline HeinOnline is a premier online research platform that provides more than 198 million pages of multidisciplinary periodicals, essential government documents, international resources, case law, and much more.
- ProQuest Congressional ProQuest Congressional is the only site anywhere that offers a comprehensive collection of congressional documents from 1789 to the present.
Credit
- Lauren Lovings-Gomez, Kelley Center Student Staff (2022-2023), PhD student of 19th-Century European and American Art at Rice University,
- Anna Xiong, Government Information Coordinator, jax2@rice.edu.
- Mary Kelleher. Kelley Center Research Librarian I.
- Kelley Center for Government Informationgovhelp@rice.edu. We welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions of significant government resources missing from this guide.