By Celia Block ’20

You’re sitting in your room, maybe watching some Netflix and scrolling through Instagram photos. It’s Martin Luther King day, but have you ever thought about why you aren’t in school right now?

We have the day off on Martin Luther King day because it is a holiday that commemorates someone who made a drastic change in our country’s history. However, most don’t use this day to think about MLK’s impact. Instead, they use it to hang out with friends or watch Netflix.

Martin Luther King day is a federal holiday and it is named after Martin Luther King, who was a social activist leader in the Civil Rights Movement. After King was assassinated in 1968, many wanted a day to honor his work. Soon enough in 1983, Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law.

The day is to commemorate King and those who were brave enough to stand up for their beliefs. We need to be teaching kids to feel comfortable to speak what they believe and understand that some people will disagree with them.

The intentions of Martin Luther King day are good; to celebrate his life, the work he did and the impact he had on the world. But, probably 99 percent of the people that “celebrate” it is using the day off to get rid of a hangover, or just watch Netflix. People aren’t really celebrating it, which is the case with many holidays.

Many people say that they don’t actually celebrate the holiday, and it’s pointless to have a day off.

However, Martin Luther King day should stay a holiday, and we should have it off. We should change our approach to the holiday. Schools should talk about why it is important to fight for your opinions and make sure students know the meaning of what MLK day is.

We should all use the day to think about the ones who have fought to give us the rights we have today and to take time to think about the issues around us, and how we ourselves can improve the community we live in.