SALT LAKE CITY — Before the year 2000, the holiday that is now known as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was referred to as Human Rights Day in Utah.
That all changed thanks to political leaders and community activists determined to honor the civil rights leader. “When the President signed it into law, he didn’t sign it as Human Rights Day. He signed it as the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday,” said Jeanetta Williams, the president of the Salt Lake chapter of the NAACP.
Williams spent years working to get the Utah legislators to change the name and made numerous requests to lawmakers to run a bill recognizing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
In 2000, Sen. Pete Suazo filed a bill that would designate the third Monday in January as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. In an interview with FOX 13 in January of 2000 he said, “He contributed so much to this country in terms of opening doors, breaking down prejudice, breaking down desegregation.”
Rep. Duane Bourdeaux was the House sponsor of the bill. He recently sat down with FOX 13 to describe the challenges it faced getting out of committee. “Thinking back about Speaker [Marty] Stephens, a lot of Speakers of the House don’t go into committee. He had to come in that day to break the tie so we could get it to the House floor,” Bourdeaux said.
The bill eventually passed the Senate and House by a wide margin and was signed into law in March of 2000. “It was so significant to Utah's history, and Dr. King’s legacy talking about social justice through non-violence,” Bourdeaux said.
Sadly, Sen. Suazo passed away in an ATV accident in 2001, but his legacy has not been forgotten. “He was an amazing figure in our community,” said House Minority Leader Angela Romero who interned for Sen. Suazo. “He was the first Chicano to ever be elected to the state Senate. He was really invested in young people and mentoring many of us.”
Now 25 years later, the work done by these community leaders has left a legacy that will last for generations. “It’s important for people to understand history so we don’t continue to repeat it,” Romero said.
“My message to the young people is to get involved and if they are involved stay involved, to know the history and know that people gave up their lives,” Wlliams said.
