The White House released an official proclamation marking Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday evening, hours after President Donald Trump faced backlash for not publicly recognizing the holiday earlier in the day.
Before the proclamation was issued, Trump had not released a statement, signed a proclamation, or taken part in any public observance honoring the late civil rights leader. Instead, he spent the federal holiday at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
The proclamation arrived after the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and other civil rights organizations criticized the president’s lack of acknowledgment, describing it as a deliberate decision not to honor King’s legacy.
When asked for comment Monday afternoon, the White House replied by email with a link to Trump’s proclamation.
Why It Matters
Trump issued a detailed Martin Luther King Jr. Day proclamation on January 15, 2021—days after the January 6 U.S. Capitol riot—highlighting Dr. King’s message of nonviolence and equality.
This year’s proclamation comes as Trump has made rolling back diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs a major focus of his second administration, prompting renewed scrutiny over how his actions align with King’s legacy and the broader struggle for racial equality.
What To Know
Throughout the morning and afternoon of January 19, Trump made no public mention of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. His only social media post that morning called for voter ID requirements—an issue opposed by many civil rights groups, which argue racial minorities are more likely to lack state-issued identification. Meanwhile, White House social media accounts posted updates on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), college football announcements, and the president’s accomplishments.
Earlier in the day, the NAACP criticized the lack of recognition, calling it a “failure” to honor King. NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson stressed on X that commemorating Dr. King involves more than celebrating his role in history.
Trump’s 2026 proclamation said, in part, “Beginning in the 1950s, Dr. King pioneered a movement that would go on to triumphantly reaffirm our national conviction that every man, woman, and child is endowed by their Creator with rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. On August 28, 1963, he stood on the marble steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., to unify millions of voices with his legendary articulation of an immortal truth: The measure of a person is found not in the color of their skin but in the content of their character.
More than 60 years after they were first proclaimed, those mighty words remain embedded in every American heart. Dr. King’s extraordinary resolve stands as an enduring testament to the unstoppable fire of freedom and, tragically, ultimately cost him his life. As President, I am steadfastly committed to ensuring that our country will always be guided by the same principles that Dr. King defended throughout his life and to upholding the timeless truth that our rights are not granted by government but endowed by Almighty God. To honor his legacy, last year, I proudly ordered the declassification of documents related to his assassination — because more than 50 years after his death, his family and the American people deserved the truth.”
Presidents have traditionally marked the holiday through speeches, community service, memorial events, or wreath-laying ceremonies at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall. President Joe Biden spoke at King’s church in 2023, and President George W. Bush participated in volunteer service events and delivered remarks at memorial sites while in office. In Trump’s January 2021 proclamation, he urged “all Americans to recommit themselves to Dr. King’s dream by engaging in acts of service.”
Trump also signed a proclamation and visited the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C., to lay a wreath in 2019 and 2020.
The Trump administration recently eliminated Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Juneteenth from the National Park Service’s lineup of fee-free days, adding Trump’s birthday—which falls on Flag Day—instead. Last year, the Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency paused observance of Black History Month under the new administration. Trump’s 2025 inauguration also coincided with Martin Luther King Jr. Day, though Biden signed the holiday proclamation before leaving office.
What Happens Next
Trump is expected to attend the National College Football Championship in Miami later today.
