Tune in to NHPR this Martin Luther King Jr. Day for a Civics 101 special about the fight in New Hampshire to honor Dr. King’s legacy. The special will air Monday, Jan. 15 at 1 p.m. and again at 7 p.m.
Today, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is publicly revered across the nation as a symbol of civil and human rights worthy of a memorial holiday — but that didn't happen overnight, or without a fight.
While Martin Luther King Jr. Day was recognized as a federal holiday in 1983, it took years before New Hampshire did the same. In fact, it was the last state to declare a state holiday in King's honor — in 1999. The team at NHPR's Civics 101 podcast brings us the story of that resistance and the Black Freedom Struggle that is far from the reverence we see today.
