The dual celebrations of a second Trump inauguration and the civil rights leader’s birth raise profound questions about Black leadership and progress toward the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream.

The coincidence that Martin Luther King Jr. Day lands on the same  Monday as Donald Trump’s inauguration isn’t a cause for concern, Bernice King told NBC News, the late civil rights icon’s daughter.

On January 20, 2025, Michelle Obama skipped Donald Trump's inauguration. Instead, she took to Instagram to honor MLK Day, and encouraged her followers to remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "legacy of service."

“Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of service always inspires me,” Obama wrote on Instagram. “This #MLKDay, I hope you’ll join me and @WhenWeAllVote in honoring Dr. King’s life and legacy by getting involved in your community.”

Though the holiday is young, this will only be the 25th year that all 50 states recognize it together. Here's what's open and closed on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Here’s a look at what’s open and what’s closed on MLK Day 2024: Post office – Closed. No mail will be delivered on Jan. 20th. Post offices will be closed. National parks -Open with free admission on MLK Day.

Here is what to know about what businesses and services that will remain open and which ones will take the day off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

U.S. stock markets will be closed on Monday, Jan. 20, in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. The Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange will both be closed on the federal holiday but will reopen for regular trading hours on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance were sworn in inside the capitol on Monday morning. Following the inauguration, several local leaders reacted to the swearing-in. “An air of true excitement and hope has overcome our great nation on this historic day.

In his prepared remarks on Monday, Trump made only one reference to King, in the context of his Black and Hispanic support. Trump made inroads into nearly every demographic group in the 2024 election, but the overwhelming majority of Black voters - about 8 in 10 - still cast their votes for the Democratic candidate.

After delivering a standout prayer during President Donald Trump s second inauguration on Monday, invoking Martin Luther King Jr s historic I Have a Dream speech, Pastor Lorenzo Sewell of 180 Church