Actress Cicely Tyson taps the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, Monday, Jan. 19, 2004, as part of a ceremony honoring Martin Luther King, Jr., as the Rev. Thomas J. Ritter, left, C. DeLores Tucker, second from left, and Mayor John F. Street, right, look on. Thousands of volunteers participated in hundreds of acts of community service in the city and its suburbs. (AP Photo/Joseph Kaczmarek)
By Amy V. Simmons
After a battle that raged for over a decade — and not without a certain sense of irony — on November 2, 1983, then-President Ronald Reagan (a Republican who chose the controversial site of Philadelphia, Mississippi to launch his campaign several years earlier) signed the official King Holiday Bill into law, designating the third Monday in January as a federal holiday in observance of the slain civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King. This was despite continued resistance within the Republican caucus, which lasted for the next 17 years.
The holiday was first observed on January 20, 1986. It was further designated as a National Day of Service when then-President Bill Clinton signed legislation to that effect introduced by Sen. Harris Wofford and Rep. John Lewis in 1994.
This year, the observed holiday overlaps with the inauguration of the 47th president of the United States, also a Republican, Donald Trump. In all presidential transitions, there is always a mix of hope, anxiety, uncertainty, and upheaval, and this year will not be any different — especially in light of the current deep divisions within the nation, as well as an active attack on the societal and legislative achievements ushered in during the Civil Rights Movement.
Still, the focus will remain on celebrating the life and legacy of a man — assassinated in 1968 at the age of 39 — who was never elected to any public office, but yet framed the debate on government, power, citizenship, economics and civil rights in ways that still resonate today.
Several of Philadelphia’s top MLK Day commemorations and celebrations — among the longest-running such events in the nation — will be taking place on Monday, January 20 — 39 years to the day that the holiday was made law.
The Philadelphia Martin Luther King, Jr. Association for Nonviolence, Inc. Ceremonial Bell Ringing and the Annual Awards and Benefit Luncheon
Coretta Scott King, right, widow of the slain civil rights leader, chats with Waverly L. Easley, chairman of the Martin Luther King, Jr., Committee in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Dec. 22, 1982. The two attended a luncheon for sponsors planning the celebration of her husband’s birthday in January, and trying to raise $100,000 for the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change. (AP Photo/Widman)
To determine how the King Federal Holiday should be observed, then-President Ronald Reagan appointed King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, and then-Gov. Thomas Kean to chair the King Federal Holiday Commission in 1984. Among Mrs. King’s wishes was to have simultaneous global bell-ringing ceremonies around the world to commemorate the concepts of freedom, justice, and equality to which she and Dr. King dedicated their lives.
According to the Philadelphia Martin Luther King, Jr. Association for Nonviolence, Inc. website, “Dr. King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, knew that Philadelphia held a special place in her late husband’s heart and thought it fitting to have a permanent organization dedicated to his ideals of peace and freedom in the City of Brotherly Love. The Association is the only affiliate commissioned by Mrs. King and the Martin Luther King Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia.”
In response to a direct request from Mrs. King herself, the Association, under founder Dr. C. DeLores Tucker’s leadership, helped spearhead the establishment of the annual holiday observance, which begins each year with a symbolic tapping of the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia at 12 noon.
October 12 of this year marks the 20th anniversary of Tucker’s passing at the age of 78.
She was a tireless civil and women’s rights advocate who reached the pinnacle of success in every endeavor she pursued, from the public to the private sectors, never backing down from fighting for the causes and principles she believed in.
The bell ringing ceremony — set to take place at 11:30 a.m. — is immediately followed by the organization’s annual awards and benefit luncheon, now in its 42nd year.
This year’s event will take place at the Sheraton Downtown Philadelphia Hotel, located at 17th and Race Streets, beginning at noon.
This year’s C. DeLores Tucker Trailblazer Award recipient will be Mayor Cherelle Parker, the first Black female and woman mayor of Philadelphia — a trailblazer in her own right. The award will be presented by the National Congress of Black Women (Philadelphia Chapter) and the Philadelphia Martin Luther King, Jr. Association for Nonviolence, Inc. — both organizations that Tucker founded and led.
The 2025 Drum Major Honorees are: Rev. Dr. Alyn E. Waller, senior pastor, Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church; Dr. Tony B. Watlington, Sr., superintendent, School District of Philadelphia; and Reginald L. Streater, president, Philadelphia Board of Education. The 2025 C. DeLores Tucker Volunteer Award will be presented to Vivian Gary.
For more information, visit: https://philadelphiamlk.org/42nd-annual-luncheon.
The 30th Annual Greater Philadelphia Martin Luther King Day of Service
Volunteers Keisha Sanders, right, and Quiana S. Ross write letters to U.S. troops overseas during a Martin Luther King day of service event, Monday, Jan. 16, 2012, at Girard College in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/ Joseph Kaczmarek)
In a true, “back to basics” spirit, the theme for the 30th annual Greater Philadelphia Martin Luther King Day of Service, also taking place this year on January 20, will focus on Dr. King’s vision of “The Beloved Community,” where all people work for justice, diversity, peace and freedom, without poverty, hunger or hate. The Greater Philadelphia King Day of Service was founded in Philadelphia in 1996. It was the first and largest King Day of Service in the nation.
The King Day of Service embraces and celebrates Dr. King’s legacy of civil rights and social justice by transforming the King Holiday into a day of citizen action, which serves as a springboard to year-round community involvement. Tens of thousands of people of all ages and backgrounds throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware will participate in hundreds of hands-on projects, workshops, trainings, conversations, a Health & Wellness Fair, a Kids Carnival, cultural presentations and more.
The coincidence of inauguration day, as well as the acknowledgment that 2025 also marks the 60th anniversary of the 1965 Voting Rights Act — currently under threat — gives this year’s King holiday a renewed sense of purpose…and urgency.
“This year’s King federal holiday also marks the inauguration of a new president,” said Todd Bernstein, president of Global Citizen and founder and director of the Greater Philadelphia King Day of Service. “It is perhaps more critical now than ever to reaffirm our commitment to Dr. King’s values, principles, and mission, to dedicate ourselves to his legacy — pursuing the cause of justice, fairness, democracy and freedom.”
This year, Girard College will host the region’s signature project for the 16th consecutive year. It is expected to include Parker, Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pa. Secretary of State Al Schmidt, Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, School District of Philadelphia superintendent Tony Watlington, Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, Fire Commissioner Jeffrey Thompson, members of Philadelphia City Council, other local, state, and federal elected officials, lead sponsor Independence Blue Cross, community and business leaders, grassroots organizations, communities of faith and young people.
Among dozens of events at Girard College, the regional signature project will feature Independence Blue Cross leading volunteers sorting and packing toiletries, which will be distributed through the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood and Community Engagement (MONCE) mini-City Halls to people in need living in underserved Philadelphia neighborhoods. After the project (approximately at noon), the kits will be transported by the City of Philadelphia to the MONCE mini-City Hall at the Church of Christian Compassion / Community of Compassion Inc., located at 6150 Cedar Ave. in West Philadelphia, for distribution on dates and times to be determined.
The first King Day of Service was started in Philadelphia in 1996 and has been organized for three decades by Global Citizen, a Philadelphia-based non-profit organization founded in 1995 to promote social and racial justice, civic engagement, community empowerment, civic responsibility, and sustained active citizenship among diverse groups. Throughout the years, more than 2.5 million volunteers have participated, with many projects continuing year-round.
This year’s King Day of Service projects at Girard College and around the region will focus on a range of issues, including:
Access to healthcare
Behavioral health
Criminal justice system
Early childhood and adult literacy
Economic justice
Educational opportunities
Environmental justice
Food insecurity
Gun violence prevention
Homelessness
Housing
Poverty
Promoting sustainable civic participation
Racism
A Rally for Peace & Justice at noon will focus on the history of Girard College and civil rights activism, with music and cultural presentations organized by the Cecil B. Moore Philadelphia Freedom Fighters, the organization that led efforts to desegregate Girard College in the 1960s.
The 14th annual Health & Wellness Fair, led by the Black Doctors Consortium, will include health professionals providing information, presentations, and testing on community services, including behavioral health.
Other projects taking place at Girard College will include:
Global Citizen, in partnership with the Read by 4th Campaign, will lead a Reading Captains training, an initiative that protects every child’s right to read in Philadelphia by connecting community volunteers with a citywide movement for early literacy.
In addition, The Book Trust is partnering with Global Citizen to donate 3,000 books to children in Philadelphia. Book Trust and Reading Captains are offering opportunities for children to choose and own books that are meaningful to them. Volunteers will be assembling Literacy Kits that will include the donated books and reading resources to be distributed to families throughout the area.
The Malcolm Jenkins Foundation is partnering with National Public Radio’s StoryCorps program and their “Brightness in Black” project, with interviews amplifying the idea that everyone has an important story to tell, that everyone’s story matters, and helps us to believe in each other by illuminating the humanity and possibility in us all — one story at a time. These recordings will be collected and housed in the U.S. Library of Congress.
For more information on these events and more, visit: https://mlkdayofservice.org/ and www.globalcitizen365.org.
For a comprehensive list of other MLK Day projects, celebrations and commemorations, visit: www.visitphilly.com/articles/philadelphia/dr-martin-luther-king-jr-day-of-service-events-in-philadelphia/.
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