Sacramento, CA…Governor Gavin Newsom issued a proclamation declaring January 15, 2020, as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the State of California. The text of the proclamation is below:

PROCLAMATION

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. taught us that we are ultimately measured not by where we stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but by the stands we take during times of challenge and controversy.

More than 50 years after his passing, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s words ring true today. They remind us that moral leadership doesn’t require a person to be in elected office or hold a position of power. Instead, exercising moral authority simply 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 our future.

We still have yet to realize Dr. King’s dream – far from it. From health outcomes to economic advancement to interactions with our criminal justice system, people of color face systemic inequities and deep disparities. But Dr. King provided a framework for how each of us can shape the future: Call out injustice. Work toward something better. Instead of giving up or losing hope, let’s gather strength from Dr. King’s legacy and use our moral authority to push for a more equitable state, society and world.

NOW THEREFORE I, GAVIN NEWSOM, Governor of the State of California, do hereby proclaim January 15, 2020, 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 15th day of January 2020.

GAVIN NEWSOM

Governor of California

ATTEST:

ALEX PADILLA

Secretary of State

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