“Over three and half decades after his death, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s contribution to building a better world, a world without discrimination or war, remains unmatched.”  Assemblymember Curren Price (D-Inglewood) said today.

Assemblymember Price urges his constituents to join him in celebrating on January 15th as the day of the anniversary of King’s actual birthday.  Assemblymember Price will be participating in the City of Gardena’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Parade and Celebration on January 13th, the Inglewood King Day Festival on January 13th, the Kingdom Parade in Los Angeles on January 15th, and at a special event on Sunday January 14th, Assemblymember Price will be hosting a Birthday Celebration for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from 11:00am to 2:00pm at the Memorial Park in Hawthorne.

With the exception of George Washington, Dr. King is the only American to have a federal holiday in honor of his birthday; the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and others have been celebrated in a number of individual states, but not nationwide.

Internationally, King is one of the few social leaders and civic activists of any country to be honored with a holiday.  Such an honor is generally reserved for military heroes, statesmen and religious figures. It is almost unheard of worldwide to honor a private citizen in such a way.

“Dr. King’s work has greatly affected the conditions under which millions of people live today,” said Assemblymember Price.  “Today’s laws forbidding discrimination in employment, education and housing have their genesis in the civil rights movement.”

There is little doubt that Dr. King did more to advance the cause of civil rights for all Americans than anyone else in our nation’s history.  It was his work and commitment that hastened the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.  Dr. King was a voice for all people who sought freedom...freedom for themselves and freedom for others.

California was one of the first states in the nation to pass laws protecting the rights of racial and religious minorities.  In 1959, the Legislature passed the Unruh Civil Rights Act, which forbade discrimination in employment.  Four years later, the Legislature enacted the Rumford Fair Housing Act of 1963.

“I am proud of how far we have come; however, as we can see by recent controversies, we have much more to do,” Assemblymember Price said. “I am committed to ensuring that we never again accept discrimination as either normal or morally acceptable. 

“In these difficult times, let us join together in honoring the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and rededicate ourselves to the ideals that he held so dearly,” Assemblymember Price concluded.

Assemblymember Curren Price was inaugurated on December 4th and serves the 51th Assembly District, which includes Inglewood, Hawthorne, Gardena, Playa Vista, Westchester, Lawndale, West Athens, Lennox, Alondra Park, West Compton, Del Aire, and Willowbrook, as well as portions of the unincorporated area of Ladera.