District to celebrate legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Posted December 31, 2009
By Jerry Rogers,
Norfolk District Public Affairs

12/31/09 NORFOLK, Va. — In honor of the continuing legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Norfolk District will host a special program on Wednesday, Jan. 20, at 1:30 p.m., to celebrate his birthday. Earl Caldwell, legendary journalist and civil rights activist, will be the guest speaker.

Caldwell, who was the only reporter present at the assassination of Dr. King on April 4, 1968, will tell a compelling story of what he witnessed that fateful day, as well as share historic moments in America's civil rights struggle.

He is also nationally renowned for his in depth reporting of historic civil rights cases. Of particular note, Caldwell is the groundbreaking journalist, whose refusal to disclose confidential information involving his sources in the Black Panther Party, led him to become a central figure in one of the 20th century's most celebrated cases involving reporters' rights.

Caldwell is currently a writer-in-residence at Hampton University, where he teaches a civil rights and the press course.

Dr. King's perpetual national holiday theme, in keeping with his enduring legacy of American non-violent activism, is "Remember! Celebrate! Act! A Day On, Not A Day Off!"

On Nov. 3, 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill establishing the third Monday of every January as the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. National Holiday, which began in 1986. However, the effort to make Dr. King's birthday a federal holiday began 15 years earlier, four days after his assassination.

The events that led to Dr. King's holiday are full of intrigue. Read "The Making of the King Holiday: A Chronology" at Related Links for a detailed historic account.