By Samoa News [email protected] Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday is a time to honor and commemorate the legacy of Dr. King who made unparalleled contributions to racial justice — a federal holiday in the U.S. observed on the third Monday of January each year. According to the Museum of African American History and Culture, it took several years to be recognized as a national holiday.
On November 2, 1983, President Ronald Reagan enacted the King Holiday Bill, establishing the third Monday of January as a federal holiday to honor civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The effort to recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day began just four days after his assassination on April 4, 1968. It took 15 years of relentless campaigning by civil rights activists for the holiday to gain federal approval and another 17 years to be acknowledged in all 50 states and territories.
Samoa News will observe MLK Day, and our office will not be open on Monday, nor will we be publishing an edition or a PDF. Any breaking news will be available on our website and Facebook pages.
Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata released the following statement in recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day:
“Each year in the United States we honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., because of the enormous role his message has had in shaping modern civil rights, even beyond the borders of the United States, but especially deeply influencing American thought, academics, laws, politics, and more.
“His message of equality for all is now a flourishing ideal that the American people seek to uphold, to the lasting benefit of people of any heritage and the ongoing strengthening of the country.
“In Washington, D.C., his Memorial on our National Mall includes some of his many powerful quotations from his famous speeches, sermons and letters. One of his briefest quotations is a personal favorite of mine, that he said in several major public speeches: ‘The time is always right to do what is right.’
“Martin Luther King, Jr., was a dedicated preacher as well as our most prominent civil rights leader. We honor his commitment to achieving change through peaceful efforts and persuasion, and as a result, his message is timeless.”
This holiday has also been called the Martin Luther King Day of Service where Americans come together to serve their neighbors and communities through volunteer service.
As of late yesterday, there was no word if the P&P Administration has declared Monday as a local holiday honoring Martin Luther King.
However, Samoa News will not publish on Monday to honor MLK Day, returning to publication on Tuesday.
Be safe American Samoa.
INAUGURATION DAY
Monday, January 20, 2025, is also the inauguration of Donald J. Trump as the 47th president of the United States and will take place on the West Front of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. It will be the 60th U.S. presidential inauguration and the second inauguration of Trump as U.S. president, marking the commencement of his second and final non-consecutive term as U.S. president, the term of JD Vance as the 50th U.S. vice president, and the only non-consecutive re-inauguration for a U.S. president after the second inauguration of Grover Cleveland in 1893. Trump's first inauguration was eight years earlier, in January 2017.
The event will include a swearing-in ceremony, a signing ceremony, an inaugural luncheon, a pass-in-review, a procession, and a parade. Inaugural balls are held at various venues before and after the inaugural ceremonies.
Section: FeaturesTags: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
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