Today is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. A day that honors a man who used words to fight for equality. “This is not a black holiday; it is a people’s holiday,” said Coretta Scott King on the day the King Holiday Bill was signed into law on November 2, 1983. But it wasn’t until 2000 that every state in America recognized Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as a paid holiday. Learn more here.
In his honor here is a special BookMark This!
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Thoughts On Hope – This article also honors Dr. King by listing his inspirational words and how hope unites us all.
- Your 25 Favorite Authors of Color – BookRiot asked readers to share their favorite authors of color after a study by Lee & Low Books discovered that out of 124 authors who made the New York Times Top 10 bestseller list in 2012, only 3 were not white and none were African American. In the comments section below let us know who your favorite author of color is.
- 12 Fundamentals Of Writing “The Other” (And The Self) – This is an article about “how to respectfully write from the perspective of characters that aren’t you.” One of my favorite quotes is from Number 6, “We can’t keep raising generations of kids of color on the notion that there’s only room for them to be bad guys or doomed sidekicks or another generation of white kids thinking they’re closer to God because of how they look. We can’t keep promoting hetero/cis-normative sexist and racist ideas in our literature. That is the default setting. If you aren’t consciously working against it, you are working for it.”
- Nelson Mandela Stars in Comic Book – This 32-page comic book is a biography of former South African President Nelson Mandela. “Not only is this a great way to understand the importance of his contribution to the world, but a great tool for kids to read about him in a different medium.”
- Picture Books About Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for Young Children – Six wonderful titles to read with your children to teach them about Dr. King and why we celebrate his birthday every year.
- Harnessing Celebrity to Civil Rights Cause – “Ruth Feldstein’s important new book, “How It Feels to Be Free: Black Women Entertainers and the Civil Rights Movement,” is an original exploration of the little-known but central role that black entertainers, especially black women, played in helping communicate and forward the movement’s goals.”
- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service– “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ‘Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?'” This .gov website helps “Americans across the country answer that question by coming together on the King Holiday to serve their neighbors and communities.” It asks all Americans to work together to provide solutions to our most pressing national problems.
Here is a video of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘I Have A Dream’ Speech given 50 years ago during the March on Washington on August 28th, 1963.
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZwmoVYEwV4
