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Our website celebrates 26 years of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Stevie Wonder wrote “Happy Birthday” in order to honor King. He used the song to campaign for MLK’s birthday (Jan. 15) to become a national holiday. Below are liner notes from Wonder’s Hotter Than July album. He dedicates those notes to King:

It is believed that for a man to lay down his life for the love of others is the supreme sacrifice. Jesus Christ by his own example showed us that there is no greater love. For nearly two thousand years now, we have been striving to have the strength to follow that example. Martin Luther King was a man who had that strength. He showed us, non-violently, a better way of life, a way of mutual respect, helping us to avoid much bitter confrontation and inevitable bloodshed. We still have a long road to travel until we reach the world that was his dream. We in the United States must not forget either his supreme sacrifice or that dream …

—Stevie Wonder