IV 
111TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1010 
Celebrating the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the 
30th anniversary of the Stevie Wonder song tribute to Dr. King, ‘‘Happy 
Birthday’’, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 13, 2010 
Mr. CONYERS (for himself, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. 
SENSENBRENNER, Mr. NADLER of New York, Ms. JACKSON LEE of 
Texas, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. GONZALEZ, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, 
and Mr. COHEN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
to the Committee on the Judiciary 
RESOLUTION 
Celebrating the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, 
Jr. during the 30th anniversary of the Stevie Wonder 
song tribute to Dr. King, ‘‘Happy Birthday’’, and for 
other purposes. 
Whereas the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 
was properly captured in Dr. King’s most famed speech, 
‘‘I Have A Dream’’, on August 28, 1963, when he said, 
‘‘I have a dream that 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’ ’’; 
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•HRES 1010 IH 
Whereas beginning with the Montgomery Bus Boycott on De-
cember 1, 1955, Dr. King led protests, demonstrations, 
rallies, freedom rides, sit-ins, vigils, all in non-violent 
fashion, to combat hate, inequality, and racial injustice in 
the United States; 
Whereas following the end of the Montgomery Bus Boycott 
in 1956, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and others, includ-
ing Dr. Ralph Abernathy, formed the Southern Christian 
Leadership Conference (SCLC) in 1957 to promote civil 
rights and to bring an absolute and nonviolent end to 
segregation; 
Whereas the efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and 
those that joined him in the civil rights movement re-
sulted in the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 
the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act 
of 1968; 
Whereas several U.S. Supreme Court cases decided during 
the era of the civil rights movement, like Browder v. 
Gayle (352 U.S. 903 (1956)), Boynton v. Virginia (364 
U.S. 454 (1960)), and Heart of Atlanta Motel Inc. v. 
United States (379 U.S. 241 (1964)) were consistent 
with the work of Dr. King and others to eradicate seg-
regation and discrimination and deem such practices un-
constitutional; 
Whereas Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Spingarn 
Medal in 1957 and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, dis-
tinctions that were given to him at the young ages of 28 
and 35, respectively, for the selflessness and dedication 
he exhibited in advancing civil rights; 
Whereas the life and work of Dr. King, to advance justice, 
equality, and peace for the entire human race, ended pre-
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•HRES 1010 IH 
maturely, when he was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in 
Memphis, Tennessee, while challenging the inequitable 
wages and treatment of Memphis sanitation workers; 
Whereas Martin Luther King, Jr., was survived by Coretta 
Scott King, an activist in her own right, and 4 children, 
2 sons and 2 daughters, who would also continue the 
fight for civil rights and equality; 
Whereas 4 days after the assassination of Dr. King, on April 
8, 1968, Representative John Conyers, Jr. introduced 
legislation to recognize Dr. King with a Federal holiday 
that coincided with the great civil rights leader’s birth-
day, January 15, 1929; 
Whereas the campaign to secure a Federal holiday in honor 
of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. lasted 15 years, with the 
1980 Stevie Wonder song tribute to Dr. King, ‘‘Happy 
Birthday’’, solidifying the campaign’s success; 
Whereas Stevie Wonder dedicated his album sleeve for ‘‘Hot-
ter Than July’’, an album released on September 29, 
1980, and upon which ‘‘Happy Birthday’’ is recorded, to 
Dr. King, with an inscription that read, ‘‘[Martin Luther 
King, Jr.] showed us, non-violently, a better way of life, 
a way of mutual respect, helping us to avoid much bitter 
confrontation and inevitable bloodshed’’; 
Whereas Mr. Wonder also wrote on his album sleeve for 
‘‘Hotter Than July’’ the following, ‘‘We still have a long 
road to travel until we reach the world that was [Dr. 
King’s] dream. We in the United States must not forget 
either his supreme sacrifice or that dream’’; 
Whereas Stevie Wonder encouraged the establishment of a 
Federal holiday in recognition of Dr. King on his album 
sleeve for ‘‘Hotter Than July’’ by expressing that, ‘‘I and 
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•HRES 1010 IH 
a growing number of people believe that it is time for our 
country to adopt legislation that will make January 15, 
Martin Luther King’s birthday, a national holiday, both 
in recognition of what he achieved and as a reminder of 
the distance which still has to be traveled’’; 
Whereas the song, ‘‘Happy Birthday’’, became a rallying cry, 
which led to the collection of 6,000,000 signatures in 
support of a Federal holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Lu-
ther King, Jr., which Stevie Wonder and Coretta Scott 
King presented to Congressional Leadership in 1982; 
Whereas ultimate enactment of legislation designating the 
third Monday of January as a Federal holiday in observ-
ance of Dr. Marin Luther King, Jr. was realized on No-
vember 3, 1983, when such legislation was signed into 
law; 
Whereas the first Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Federal holi-
day was observed on January 20, 1986, and celebrated 
with a concert headlined by Stevie Wonder, who has, in 
the years since, continued his commitment to promoting 
peace and equality, for which he has been recognized with 
a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Civil 
Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee; 
Whereas the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is contin-
ued today, as evidenced by the work of organizations like 
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored 
People (NAACP) and the Southern Christian Leadership 
Conference, which is currently led by Dr. King’s daugh-
ter, Bernice King, and was at one time led by Dr. King’s 
son, Martin Luther King, III; 
Whereas today, the very mission of the Southern Christian 
Leadership Conference states, ‘‘In the spirit of Dr. Mar-
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•HRES 1010 IH 
tin Luther King, Jr., the Southern Christian Leadership 
Conference (SCLC) is renewing its commitment to bring 
about the promise of ‘one nation, under God, indivisible’ 
together with the commitment to activate the ‘strength to 
love’ within the community of humankind’’; and 
Whereas in addition to organizations, the legacy of Dr. King 
continues on today with people in the United States and 
throughout the world, with individual acts of compassion, 
courage, and peace: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) celebrates the life and work of Dr. Martin 
Luther King, Jr. during the 30th anniversary of the 
Stevie Wonder song tribute to Dr. King, ‘‘Happy 
Birthday’’; 
(2) recognizes that the legacy of Dr. Martin 
Luther King, Jr. continues on with commitments to 
freedom, equality, and justice, as exhibited by Stevie 
Wonder and so many others; and 
(3) encourages the people of the United States 
to commemorate the legacy of Dr. King by renewing 
pledges to advance those principles and actions that 
are consistent with Dr. King’s belief that ‘‘all men 
are created equal’’. 
Æ 
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