H. Res. 1061 
In the House of Representatives, U. S., 
April 1, 2008. 
Whereas 40 years ago on April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther 
King, Jr., the moral leader of America, was taken from 
us all too soon by an assassin’s bullet, while standing on 
the balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee, 
where he was to lead sanitation workers in protest 
against low wages and intolerable working conditions; 
Whereas Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., while just one man, 
changed America forever in a few short years through his 
preaching of nonviolence and passive resistance; 
Whereas Dr. King was the preeminent civil rights advocate 
of his time, leading the civil rights movement in the 
United States during the 1950s and 1960s and earning 
world-wide recognition as an eloquent and articulate 
spokesperson for equality; 
Whereas Dr. King dedicated his life to securing the funda-
mental principles of the United States of liberty and jus-
tice for all United States citizens; 
Whereas Dr. King was a champion of nonviolence who fer-
vently advocated nonviolent resistance as the strategy to 
end segregation and racial discrimination in America, 
and in 1964, at age 35, he became the youngest man to
•HRES 1061 EH 
be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition for his 
efforts; 
Whereas through his work and reliance on nonviolent protest, 
Dr. King was instrumental in the passage of the Civil 
Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965; 
Whereas Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., broke down walls of 
racial segregation and racial discrimination in places of 
public accommodation; 
Whereas Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., opened doors to the 
participation of all Americans in the political process; 
Whereas the work of Dr. King created a basis of under-
standing and respect and helped communities, and the 
United States as a whole, to act cooperatively and coura-
geously to restore tolerance, justice, and equality between 
people; 
Whereas in the face of hatred and violence, Dr. King 
preached a doctrine of nonviolence and civil disobedience 
to combat segregation, discrimination, and racial injus-
tice, and believed that people have the moral capacity to 
care for other people; 
Whereas Dr. King awakened the conscience and conscious-
ness of the United States and used his message of hope 
to bring people together to build the ‘‘Beloved Commu-
nity’’, a community of justice, at peace with itself; 
Whereas Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., through his persist-
ence, raw courage, and faith brought about a nonviolent 
revolution in America without firing a single bullet; and 
Whereas our country and our society are better because of 
what he did and what he said: Now, therefore, be it
•HRES 1061 EH 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives encourages 
all Americans to— 
(1) pause and remember the life and legacy of Dr. 
Martin Luther King, Jr., on this, the 40th anniversary 
of his death; 
(2) commemorate the legacy of Dr. King, so that, 
as Dr. King hoped, ‘‘one day this Nation will rise up and 
live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these 
truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal’’; 
and 
(3) remember the message of Dr. King and rededi-
cate themselves to Dr. King’s goal of a free and just 
United States. 
Attest: 
Clerk.