Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr.

Guided by his Christian faith and inspired by the nonviolent philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a transformative movement throughout the 1950s and 1960s to secure legal equality for African Americans in the United States. At a time when many believed freedom could only be achieved through force, Dr. King championed the power of words, peaceful protest, grassroots organizing, and civil disobedience. Through unwavering commitment to nonviolence, he helped accomplish what once seemed impossible and reshaped the course of American history.

Today on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, House Minority Leader Tony McCombie is remembering the prolific leader through his own words, ones that emphasize the need for community, compassion and justice:

"The time is always right to do what is right."

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?"

"True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."

"The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

"We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope."

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is the only non-president to have a national holiday dedicated in his honor and is the only non-president memorialized on the Great Mall in the nation's capital. His teachings and his memory continue to inspire generations.