Americans across the country celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
(CBS, KYMA) - Across the nation, Americans are celebrating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the federal holiday that honors his work and legacy.
People gathered around the King Memorial in Washington D.C. to remember the civil rights leader while a peace walk and parade was held in the streets of the nation's capitol.
In Oxnard, California, outside Los Angeles, a high school band helped lead a freedom march, and in Chicago, the Rainbow Push Coalition hosted its 2026 Dr. King Annual Breakfast, bringing together leaders to discuss his fight for equality.
"People like my dad Henry, who marched from Selma to Montgomery because he believed change was possible when good people refused to stay silent. When he was asked why he marched, he simply said, I didn't like how human beings were being treated. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? This is our moment to choose courage over comfort, to choose faith over fear."
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton (D-Ill.)
The third monday in January was designated a national holiday in King's honor in 1983, 15 years after he was assassinated on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.
