In an article in Diverse Education, UT geography professor Derek Alderman teamed up with Penn State University professor Joshua Inwood, to discuss why the Martin Luther King federal holiday should be moved to April 4. Since its first observance in 1986, the MLK holiday has become an important moment for the nation to reflect on King’s historical importance and the broader significance of the Civil Rights Movement.
“As scholars who have spent the past several years studying the commemoration of King, we (Alderman and Inwood) wonder how his holiday might look and feel if it were held on April 4th (the day of Martin Luther King’s death) rather than January 15th,” they write.
Read more of the article online, as well as additional coverage by the Knoxville News Sentinel and Washington’s Top News (WTOP).