Governor Newsom Proclaims Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

SACRAMENTO, CA January 15, 2024 – Governor Gavin Newsom today issued a proclamation declaring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the State of California.

The text of the proclamation and a copy can be found below:

PROCLAMATION

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s call to stand up against injustice and protect the most sacred tenets of democracy still rings true today more than 50 years after his passing. As we confront the many challenges our state and nation face, his powerful example is an enduring inspiration demonstrating the impact we can have by uniting across our differences.

Dr. King’s legacy reminds us that moral leadership does not require a person to be in elected office or hold a position of power. Instead, exercising moral authority requires the will to do the right thing. Standing on the shoulders of civil rights leaders before him and working in concert with a generation of activists, Dr. King helped transform how our country saw itself and its future.

We still have yet to realize Dr. King’s dream – far from it. Our state is leading historic efforts to address systemic inequities and disparities that people of color continue to face, so that everyone has a fair shot at achieving the California dream. Let us draw strength from Dr. King’s legacy and work together to further advance justice, opportunity, and equity for all Californians.

NOW THEREFORE I, GAVIN NEWSOM, Governor of the State of California, do hereby proclaim January 15, 2024, as “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.”

IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of California to be affixed this 12^th day of January 2024.

GAVIN NEWSOM
Governor of California

ATTEST:
SHIRLEY N. WEBER, Ph.D.
Secretary of State