| Home | News| Living in China| MMS | SMS | About us | Contact us|
       
     Language Tips > Festivals
    Dr. Martin Luther King Day
    Third Monday in January
    "We will not resort to violence.
    We will not degrade ourselves with hatred.
    Love will not be returned with hate."
    ——Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

    Click here to listen to the famous speech "I Have a Dream," delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 23, 1963.

    It was December, 1955, and Martin Luther King, Jr. had just received his doctorate degree in theology(神學). He had moved to Montgomery( 蒙哥馬利), Alabama to preach at a Baptist church. He saw there, as in many other southern states, that African-Americans had to ride in the back of public buses. Dr. King knew that this law violated the rights of every African-American. He organized and led a boycott(聯合抵制)of the public buses in the city of Montgomery. Any person, black or white, who was against segregation(種族隔離)refused to use public transportation. Those people who boycotted were threatened or attacked by other people, or even arrested or jailed by the police. After 382 Days of boycotting the bus system, the Supreme Court(最高法院)declared that the Alabama state segregation law was unconstitutional.

    African-Americans were not only segregated on buses throughout the south. Equal housing was denied to them, and seating in many hotels and restaurants was refused.

    In 1957, Dr. King founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference(南
    方基督教領導會議)and moved back to his home town of Atlanta, Georgia. This was the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement(民權運動). In the years following, he continued to organize non-violent protests against unequal treatment of African-American people. His philosophy remained peaceful, and he constantly reminded his followers that their fight would be victorious if they did not resort to bloodshed(流血). Nonetheless(盡管如此), he and his demonstrators were often threatened and attacked. Demonstrations which began peacefully often ended up in violence, and he and many others were often arrested.

    On August 23, 1963, a crowd of more than 250,000 people gathered in Washington, D.C. and marched to the Capitol Building(國會大廈)to support the passing of laws that guaranteed every American equal civil rights. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was at the front of the "March on Washington." On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial(林肯紀念堂)that day, Dr. King delivered a speech that was later entitled "I Have a Dream." The March was one of the largest gatherings of black and white people that the nation's capital had ever seen... and no violence occurred.

    One year later, the Civil Rights Act(民權法案)of 1964 was passed. It was not the first law of civil rights for Americans, but it was the most thorough and effective. The act guaranteed equal rights in housing, public facilities, voting and public schools. Everyone would have impartial hearings(申訴的機會)and jury trials. A civil rights commission would ensure that these laws were enforced. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and thousands of others now knew that they had not struggled in vain(徒勞). In the same year Dr. King won the Nobel Peace Prize for leading non-violent demonstrations.

    In 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated while he was leading a workers' strike in Memphis, Tennessee. White people and black people who had worked so hard for peace and civil rights were shocked and angry. The world grieved the loss of this man of peace.

    The Making of a Holiday

    Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s death did not slow the Civil Rights Movement. Black and white people continued to fight for freedom and equality. Coretta Scott King is the widow of the civil rights leader. In 1970, she established the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Center in Atlanta, Georgia. This "living memorial" consists of his boyhood home and the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King is buried.

    On Monday, January 20, 1986, in cities and towns across the country people celebrated the first official Martin Luther King Day, the only federal holiday commemorating an African-American. A ceremony which took place at an old railroad depot(鐵路倉儲)in Atlanta Georgia was especially emotional. Hundreds had gathered to sing and to march. Many were the same people who, in 1965, had marched for fifty miles between two cities in the state of Alabama to protest segregation and discrimination of black Americans.

    All through the 1980's, controversy surrounded the idea of a Martin Luther King Day. Congressmen and citizens had petitioned(請求)the President to make January 15, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday, a federal holiday. Others wanted to make the holiday on the day he died, while some people did not want to have any holiday at all.

    January 15 had been observed as a public holiday for many years in 27 states and Washington, D.C. Finally, in 1986, President Ronald Reagan declared the third Monday in January a federal legal holiday commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday.

    Schools, offices and federal agencies are closed for the holiday. On Monday there are quiet memorial services as well as elaborate ceremonies in honor of Dr. King. On the preceding Sunday, ministers of all religions give special sermons(布道)reminding everyone of Dr. King's lifelong work for peace. All weekend, popular radio stations play songs and speeches that tell the history of the Civil Rights Movement. Television channels broadcast special programs with filmed highlights of Dr. King's life and times.

     
    Go to Other Sections
    Story Tools
     
    Copyright by chinadaily.com.cn. All rights reserved

    版權聲明:未經中國日報網站許可,任何人不得復制本欄目內容。如需轉載請與本網站聯系。
    None of this material may be used for any commercial or public use. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
     

     

    中文日韩亚洲欧美字幕| 无码人妻精品中文字幕免费 | 国精品无码一区二区三区在线| 人妻无码中文久久久久专区| 无码国产精品一区二区免费式芒果| 国产中文字幕在线| 在线看福利中文影院| 国产午夜无码精品免费看动漫| 台湾无码AV一区二区三区| 91中文字幕yellow字幕网| 极品粉嫩嫩模大尺度无码视频| 亚洲AV无码久久| 天堂Aⅴ无码一区二区三区| 日韩欧美成人免费中文字幕| 最近免费中文字幕MV在线视频3| 国产精品三级在线观看无码| 亚洲av无码乱码国产精品fc2| 中文字幕在线免费看线人| 台湾佬中文娱乐中文| 日韩欧美群交P片內射中文| 午夜精品久久久久久久无码| 99久久国产热无码精品免费久久久久| 13小箩利洗澡无码视频网站免费 | 精品人妻V?出轨中文字幕| 亚洲天堂2017无码中文| 精品无人区无码乱码大片国产| 久久久无码一区二区三区| 无码av免费网站| 日韩精品无码一本二本三本| 亚洲AV无码成人精品区在线观看| 97无码人妻福利免费公开在线视频| 中文字幕无码久久久| 久久人妻无码中文字幕| 亚洲精品无码久久一线| 亚洲中文字幕无码久久2020| 亚洲国产AV无码专区亚洲AV| 亚洲国产精品无码久久久不卡 | 亚洲真人无码永久在线| 精品无码人妻一区二区三区品| 免费中文字幕视频| 精品高潮呻吟99av无码视频|