Just days after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in 1968, U.S. Congressman John Conyers introduced legislation to make the civil rights icon’s birthday a national holiday. But the initial bill gained little momentum.
It would take over a decade of campaigning before MLK Day became a reality – spearheaded by the state of Illinois.
Illinois Schools First Commemorate King’s Birthday in 1969
In 1969, Illinois Representative Harold Washington sponsored a bill declaring January 15, King’s birthday, a commemorative holiday.
Signed by Governor Richard Ogilvie, this made Illinois the first state to officially honor Dr. King’s legacy. Schools were encouraged (but not required) to teach about King’s life and hold observances.
A later 1971 bill tried to fully establish the date as an official state holiday, but failed. However, the groundwork was laid for January 15 to gain wider meaning in Illinois.
State Becomes First To Approve MLK Day As Legal Holiday in 1973
In 1973, recently elected Governor Dan Walker picked up where his predecessor left off – signing a bill to formally establish Dr. King’s birthday as a legal state holiday.
Sponsored once again by Rep. Harold Washington, this cemented Illinois’ place in history as the first state to provide King the honor of his own holiday. State offices, courts and schools now closed every January 15 to observe the occasion.
Later, as Chicago’s first Black mayor, Washington would continue building on his early advocacy that helped set the standard for national remembrance of the civil rights icon.
Federal MLK Holiday Comes in 1983 After Lengthy Debate
Over the next decade, buoyed by public campaigns, numerous other states gradually followed Illinois’ lead in adopting January 15 MLK holiday observances. But it wasn’t until 1983 that the federal holiday finally passed after contentious congressional debate.
President Ronald Reagan signed the King holiday bill into law on November 2, 1983. The first nationwide observance took place on January 20, 1986 – almost 20 years after King’s assassination.
In the end, Illinois legislation from 1973 paved the way for honoring Dr. King across America today. The state recognized early on that his birthday warrants celebration as a testament to his outsized impact.
And the entire nation continues benefiting from that visionary decision out of Illinois over 50 years ago.
