Martin Luther King Day was first observed in 1986,
although it was not observed in all states until the year 2000.

Martin Luther King, Jr. became
a man to
look up to in the Civil Rights Movement.

He
to try to bring an end to racial segregation and discrimination.
When much
of American didn't
get it
during the 1950s and 1960s
he was a leading spokesperson for nonviolent methods of achieving social change. His eloquence as a speaker and his
worldly wisdom,
personal charisma, combined with a deeply rooted determination to get America to
let go of
prejudice and create equality among all races.
This put him in
the eye of the storm.
He dared to go
where angels fear to tread
and despite personal risk won a world-wide following. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Price in 1964 and was selected by Time magazine as its Man of the Year. His “I Have a Dream” speech, which is now considered to be among the great speeches of American history, is frequently quoted. His success in
taking the drive for civil rights was
dead on
and inspiring , however, made him the target of segregationists who believed firmly in the superiority of the white race and feared social change.

His belief in non-violent protest was a
double-edged sword
because there is a
fine line
between protest and breaking the law.
He was arrested
by the
fuzz over 20 times.
The courts threatened to
throw the book at 
him, and
lock
him up.

His home was bombed and he was assassinated on April 4, 1968, on the balcony of a motel where he was staying in Memphis. A monument to Dr. King was unveiled in the national capital in 2012.
Idioms in the article
worldly wisdom
where angels fear to tread
fine line
let go of
dead on
the eye of the storm
throw the book at
double-edged sword
get it
look up to
fuzz
lock you up
rock the boat