WAIT, WHAT?!
MLK Jr.
CIA NOT ALLOWED TO DO DOMESTIC SPYING
Kanishka Singh
Mon, January 6, 2025
CIA's secret museum adds new spy exhibits in Virginia
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The CIA has released documents showing it monitored Latino activists who had supported late civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. and who opposed police brutality and the Vietnam War.
The files were reported first by Axios on Monday, posted on the CIA's website and ranged from 1968 to 1983.
WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
Surveillance by U.S. agencies has a long history, with historians and rights advocates having condemned its sweeping and abusive nature in periods like the Vietnam war, the civil rights movement, as well as the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The latest documents were requested by Democratic U.S. Representatives Joaquin Castro and Jimmy Gomez on CIA's Operation Chaos, which was a domestic espionage program that targeted American citizens and voices of dissent.
CONTEXT
The documents released by the CIA showed that the work of activists like Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales and farmworker union leader Cesar Chavez was viewed by the agency as a threat and with suspicion. They also showed that the movements of those leaders were tracked.
The documents also revealed surveillance of Mexican American students in universities in that period.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
ORIGINALLY A REPUBLICAN DECLARED FEDERAL HOLIDAY
When is Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2025? Everything to know about the federal holiday
Grace Tucker and Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer
Mon, January 6, 2025
Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the federal holiday honoring the life and birthday of an icon of America's civil rights movement, is this month.
The holiday, observed annually on the third Monday of January, falls on Jan. 20 this year.
Here's everything to know about Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2025, including why we celebrate it.
What day is MLK Day 2025?
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed annually on the third Monday of January. This year, it takes place on Monday, Jan. 20.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed annually on the third Monday of January.
When was Martin Luther King Jr. born?
King, a civil rights icon, was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on Jan. 15, 1929.
When did Martin Luther King Jr. Day become a federal holiday?
Ceremonies commemorating King's birthday and legacy have been held since his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. However, the road to naming a federal holiday in his honor was a long one.
It wasn't until nearly 20 years after his assassination that Martin Luther King Jr. Day became federally recognized in 1983, when President Ronald Reagan signed it into law.
Why and how do we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day?
The federal holiday honors the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights leader who dedicated his life to speaking out against injustice, inequality, poverty and war. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the holiday is usually celebrated with marches, parades, speeches by civil rights leaders and politicians, volunteering and special programming at museums and other cultural institutions nationwide.
Each year, Cincinnati's National Underground Railroad Freedom Center hosts a King Legacy Celebration on the holiday, featuring a keynote speaker and musical performances. The MLK Coalition is also hosting its 50th anniversary Freedom March this year with the theme “Jubilee for MLK’s Beloved Community" inspired by King's 1960 Freedom Jubilee speech.
MLK Day is the only federal holiday that is "designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer and improve their communities," per the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Who killed Martin Luther King Jr.?
According to the National Archives, James Earl Ray, a 40-year-old convicted armed robber who escaped from the Missouri State Penitentiary, pleaded guilty on March 10, 1969, to shooting King nearly a year prior on April 4, 1968.
King was shot and wounded on the second-floor balcony outside his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. He was pronounced dead at St. Joseph Hospital later that day.
Ray was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 99 years at the state prison. In 1998, he died at the age of 70 from kidney disease and liver failure after serving 29 years in prison.
Kanishka Singh
Mon, January 6, 2025
CIA's secret museum adds new spy exhibits in Virginia
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The CIA has released documents showing it monitored Latino activists who had supported late civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. and who opposed police brutality and the Vietnam War.
The files were reported first by Axios on Monday, posted on the CIA's website and ranged from 1968 to 1983.
WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
Surveillance by U.S. agencies has a long history, with historians and rights advocates having condemned its sweeping and abusive nature in periods like the Vietnam war, the civil rights movement, as well as the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The latest documents were requested by Democratic U.S. Representatives Joaquin Castro and Jimmy Gomez on CIA's Operation Chaos, which was a domestic espionage program that targeted American citizens and voices of dissent.
CONTEXT
The documents released by the CIA showed that the work of activists like Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales and farmworker union leader Cesar Chavez was viewed by the agency as a threat and with suspicion. They also showed that the movements of those leaders were tracked.
The documents also revealed surveillance of Mexican American students in universities in that period.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
ORIGINALLY A REPUBLICAN DECLARED FEDERAL HOLIDAY
When is Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2025? Everything to know about the federal holiday
Grace Tucker and Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer
Mon, January 6, 2025
Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the federal holiday honoring the life and birthday of an icon of America's civil rights movement, is this month.
The holiday, observed annually on the third Monday of January, falls on Jan. 20 this year.
Here's everything to know about Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2025, including why we celebrate it.
What day is MLK Day 2025?
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed annually on the third Monday of January. This year, it takes place on Monday, Jan. 20.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is observed annually on the third Monday of January.
When was Martin Luther King Jr. born?
King, a civil rights icon, was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on Jan. 15, 1929.
Is MLK Day always on a Monday?
Yes, the holiday is observed each year on the third Monday of January due to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which former President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law in 1968. The law moved several federal holidays, including Memorial Day, Labor Day and Washington's Birthday, to Mondays to create long weekends for federal employees.
Even though King's birthday is Jan. 15, the holiday is commemorated on Monday like the other holidays under the Uniform Monday Holiday Act.
Yes, the holiday is observed each year on the third Monday of January due to the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which former President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law in 1968. The law moved several federal holidays, including Memorial Day, Labor Day and Washington's Birthday, to Mondays to create long weekends for federal employees.
Even though King's birthday is Jan. 15, the holiday is commemorated on Monday like the other holidays under the Uniform Monday Holiday Act.
When did Martin Luther King Jr. Day become a federal holiday?
Ceremonies commemorating King's birthday and legacy have been held since his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. However, the road to naming a federal holiday in his honor was a long one.
It wasn't until nearly 20 years after his assassination that Martin Luther King Jr. Day became federally recognized in 1983, when President Ronald Reagan signed it into law.
The holiday was observed for the first time three years later, in 1986, and celebrated in every state by 2000.
Efforts from King's widow, Coretta Scott King, lawmakers, activists and others helped bring the holiday to fruition, USA TODAY reports. Stevie Wonder also played a role in the law's passage, writing about the importance of recognizing King's legacy in his 1980 song "Happy Birthday."
"I just never understood / How a man who died for good / Could not have a day that would / Be set aside for his recognition," Wonder wrote.
Efforts from King's widow, Coretta Scott King, lawmakers, activists and others helped bring the holiday to fruition, USA TODAY reports. Stevie Wonder also played a role in the law's passage, writing about the importance of recognizing King's legacy in his 1980 song "Happy Birthday."
"I just never understood / How a man who died for good / Could not have a day that would / Be set aside for his recognition," Wonder wrote.
Why and how do we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day?
The federal holiday honors the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights leader who dedicated his life to speaking out against injustice, inequality, poverty and war. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the holiday is usually celebrated with marches, parades, speeches by civil rights leaders and politicians, volunteering and special programming at museums and other cultural institutions nationwide.
Each year, Cincinnati's National Underground Railroad Freedom Center hosts a King Legacy Celebration on the holiday, featuring a keynote speaker and musical performances. The MLK Coalition is also hosting its 50th anniversary Freedom March this year with the theme “Jubilee for MLK’s Beloved Community" inspired by King's 1960 Freedom Jubilee speech.
MLK Day is the only federal holiday that is "designated as a national day of service to encourage all Americans to volunteer and improve their communities," per the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Who killed Martin Luther King Jr.?
According to the National Archives, James Earl Ray, a 40-year-old convicted armed robber who escaped from the Missouri State Penitentiary, pleaded guilty on March 10, 1969, to shooting King nearly a year prior on April 4, 1968.
King was shot and wounded on the second-floor balcony outside his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. He was pronounced dead at St. Joseph Hospital later that day.
Ray was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 99 years at the state prison. In 1998, he died at the age of 70 from kidney disease and liver failure after serving 29 years in prison.
No comments:
Post a Comment