To the Editor: 

Next week some will celebrate the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday. I continue to see resistance within the broader national community to fully celebrating Dr. King. Recently, there has even been a movement to curtail this holiday. But within the African American community, it has become a community day marked by breakfast celebrations, award ceremonies, youth-centered activities, public service, concerts, and more. Here on the Island, the NAACP will celebrate with a public luncheon featuring live music, guest speakers, and more. It is truly an affirming holiday — one that encourages unity, strengthens youth, and fosters community building.

But the road to making the day a holiday was rocky, met with congressional stalls and resistance. It was four days after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 8, 1968, that Rep. John Conyers introduced the first legislation to honor him with a national holiday. It was not until Nov. 2, 1983, that President Ronald Reagan signed a bill making it a federal holiday, effective Jan. 20, 1986. Up until that time, there were countless efforts to ratify the holiday. Coretta Scott King, Rep. Conyers and others drafted bills that were not ratified by Congress. Many states, including Illinois, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Jersey, instituted their own MLK state holidays. But one turning point was when Stevie Wonder got involved and wrote the song “Happy Birthday” in 1981, to raise awareness and support for the effort. 

Music has been at the forefront of all revolutionary movements. On both sides of the aisle, music has been used to rally the masses. Musical chants have been an integral part of protest and social justice campaigns — from “Si Se Puede” to “I Can’t Breathe” from the Black Lives Matter movement. And even President Barack Obama used Sam Cooke’s “Things Gonna Change” to rally his supporters during his presidential campaign. Celebrities like John Legend, Angéelique Kidjo, Harry Belafonte, Nina Simone, Kendrick Lamar, and others have used their music to shed light on critical topics and move people to action. 

So, when Stevie Wonder wrote and performed this song, it was a chant that filled the space with unity and joy, and renewed the efforts for a national holiday. And even today, Black Americans and others use the song when celebrating their birthdays. Take a good look at the lyrics (bit.ly/YT_WonderHappyBirthday), and you will come to understand the power behind the song to commemorate not only Dr. King, but the values we all should stand for. 

“Why has there never been a holiday /Where peace is celebrated all throughout the world?”  –“Happy Birthday”

 

Yvonne Mendez
West Tisbury