DJ COMMUNITY

When is MLK Day? What to know about upcoming January holiday.

When is MLK Day? What to know about the upcoming January holiday.

Story by Michelle Del Rey, USA TODAY

Jan 05 • 2 min read • Updated 2h ago

USA TODAY

View on Watch

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is this month.

The holiday, which falls on the third Monday in January, is held near the civil rights leader’s birthday on Jan. 15, 1929. It’s held on a Monday to allow U.S. residents a three-day weekend.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day became a holiday on Nov. 2, 1983 after President Ronald Reagan signed a bill into law officially establishing the commemoration.

Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each...

The King family spent years after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968 campaigning for a federal holiday to honor the civil rights leader, who earned a Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 for his work to end segregation and target racism in America.

Mar 5, 1964; Louisville, KY, USA; Jackie Robinson wore an Organization for Civil Rights badge when he took part in a Louisville march with Dr. Martin Luther King in 1964.© Bill Strode, Courier Journal via USA TODAY Network

As the holiday approaches, here’s everything to know about Martin Luther King Jr. Day, including when it falls this year.

©-, AFP via Getty Images

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King (C) waves to supporters Aug. 28, 1963, on the Mall in Washington, DC, during the "March on Washington, where King delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech, which mobilized supporters of desegregation and prompted the Civil Rights Act of 1964. King said the march was "the greatest demonstration of freedom in the history of the United States." Martin Luther King ...

When is Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 2026?

This year, the holiday is observed on Monday, Jan. 19.

Why is Martin Luther King Jr. Day on the third Monday in January?

The holiday is on the third Monday in January to coincide with the civil rights leader’s birthday. It’s one of several holidays that fall on a Monday each year due to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968.

The then-president signed the bill to give workers long weekends throughout the year. At times, Martin Luther King Jr. Day coincides with Inauguration Day, which occurs every four years on Jan. 20 or Jan. 21 if Jan. 20 falls on a Sunday.

Presidents Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama were inaugurated on the holiday.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy

The civil rights icon is the only non-president with a federal holiday in their honor. The federal government closes on the day, and U.S. residents are allowed to reflect on King’s legacy. King rose as a civil rights leader in 1955 during the Montgomery bus boycott in Alabama.

Two years later, he founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. In 1963, he led the March on Washington, delivering the famed “I Have a Dream” speech on the National Mall.

King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, while standing on a second-floor balcony outside his room at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee.

James Earl Ray confessed to shooting King and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. King was 39 at the time of his death.

Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at mdelrey@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is MLK Day? What to know about upcoming January holiday.