Monday, January 17, 2022, there will be no school due to Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) day.

But what is MLK day? MLK is celebrated on the third Monday of January every year. King was an influential Civil Rights leader, best known for racial equality and ending racial segregation in the United States. On MLK’s day, everything King achieved throughout his lifetime is remembered and celebrated. After King’s death, U.S. Representative John Conyers and U.S. Senator Edward Brooke introduced a bill in Congress to make King’s birthday a national holiday. Unfortunately, it did not get the required votes, so Congress pushed it aside until 1980. The famous musician, Stevie Wonder, held a rally and sang Happy Birthday to King. Six million signatures were collected for a petition for Congress to pass the law and is considered the largest petition in favor of an issue in U.S. history. This holiday celebrates how far society has come from segregation but also is an opportunity to reflect on what still needs work for racial equality.