Quick Facts:

• Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography: From Encyclopedia Britannica and PBS, a short MLK biography.
• Chronology of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday: The King Center presents the holiday’s history.
• “I Have a Dream” speech: From Project Gutenberg, a downloadable audio version of King’s historic speech

Going Further

These are great resources, available on the Web, for more in-depth research on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr

• The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute: The homepage of this Stanford University-based institute. A great starting place for finding in-depth resources on King’s life, work and legacy.
• Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement: This compilation of MLK resources from the Seattle Times includes a biography, photographs and a selection of important speeches.
• Time Magazine Martin Luther King, Jr. Archive: This provides a compilation of items published in Time Magazine during King’s life and following his assassination. Images of Martin Luther King, Jr. covers are included. Also see the Time Magazine Civil Rights Archive.
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Newspaper Archive: An archive of news items about Martin Luther King, Jr. from more than 50,000 news sources
• Civil Rights Digital Library: A collection of primary sources, including video, audio and print items, about the Civil Rights movement from the collections of libraries, museums and archives across the United States.

Inauguration resources

These resources provide information about the 2009 inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States, as well as inaugurations of past presidents.

• Obama's Inaugural Annotated: Slate Magazine: Slate writers compiled supplementary notes on the most interesting and historically relevant phrases from Obama's Inaugural Address. Mouse over a highlighted sentence or phrase to see an explanation of its significance.
• 2009 Inauguration Coverage: MSNBC: A complete guide to NBC New York's archive of galleries, video and stories about this week's historic inauguration.
• Presidential Inaugural Committee: Homepage of the Inauguration’s organizers.
• A New Birth of Freedom: This page, maintained by the United States Senate, provides background information on the significance of the 2009 Inauguration.
• Times Topics: The Presidential Inauguration: A guide to articles and information about the 2009 inauguration from the New York Times
• Inauguration Central: A guide to articles and information about the 2009 inauguration from the Washington Post.
• “I Do Solemnly Swear…”: Presidential Inaugurations: From the Library of Congress, a digitized collection of memorabilia related to past presidential inaugurations, including pictures, letters, programs, and handwritten drafts of inaugural speeches.

Service resources

The Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday is about honoring the legacy of a Civil Rights hero, but more importantly, it is meant to serve as a call to action. The election of Barack Obama as our 44th president is a momentous achievement, one that is inspiring to those who continue to work for equality and justice. The following site is a great place for finding ways to get involved:

• America Serves