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Today's Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Martin Luther King Day from Tino Grandio

Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a US Federal Holiday. It commemorates civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday. It is celebrated on the third Monday in January and is one of only four United States Federal holidays to honor an individual person.

BIOGRAPHY
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a civil rights activist in the 1950s and 1960s. He led non-violent protests to fight for the rights of all people including African Americans. He hoped that America and the world could become a colorblind society where race would not impact a person's civil rights. He is considered one of the great orators of modern times, and his speeches still inspire many to this day. 

CHILDHOOD
 Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, GA on January 15, 1929. He went to Booker T. Washington High School. He was so smart that he skipped two grades in high school. He started his college education at Morehouse College at the young age of fifteen. After getting his degree in sociology from Morehouse, Martin got a divinity degree from Crozer Seminary and then got his doctor's degree in theology from Boston University. Martin's dad was a preacher which inspired Martin to pursue the ministry. He had a younger brother and an older sister. In 1953 he married Coretta Scott. Later, they would have four children including Yolanda, Martin, Dexter, and Bernice. 

CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST
In his first major civil rights action, Martin Luther King, Jr. led the Montgomery Bus Boycott. This started when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. She was arrested and spent the night in jail. As a result, Martin helped to organize a boycott of the public transportation system in Montgomery. The boycott lasted for over a year. It was very tense at times. Martin was arrested and his house was bombed. In the end, however, Martin prevailed and segregation on the Montgomery buses came to an end. 

'I HAVE A DREAM' SPEECH
In 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. helped to organize the famous "March on Washington". Over 250,000 people attended this march in an effort to show the importance of civil rights legislation. Some of the issues the march hoped to accomplish included an end to segregation in public schools, protection from police abuse, and to get laws passed that would prevent discrimination in employment. It was at this march where Martin gave his "I Have a Dream" speech. This speech has become one of the most famous speeches in history. The March on Washington was a great success. The Civil Rights Act was passed a year later in 1964. 

ASSASSINATION
 Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4. 1968 in Memphis, TN. While standing on the balcony of his hotel, he was shot by James Earl Ray. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington D.C. Photo by Ducksters 

INTERESTING FACTS

• King was the youngest person to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.
• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a national holiday. 
• At the Atlanta premier of the movie Gone with the Wind, Martin sang with his church choir. 
• There are over 730 streets in the United States named after Martin Luther King, Jr. 
• One of his main influences was Mohandas Gandhi who taught people to protest in a non-violent manner. 
• He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 
• The name on his original birth certificate is Michael King. This was a mistake, however. He was supposed to be named after his father who was named for Martin Luther, the leader of the Christian reformation movement. 
• He is often referred to by his initials MLK. 

Read more at: http://www.ducksters.com/biography/martin_luther_king_jr.php

The New Year in the USA

Christmas in the USA

Christmas in the usa from Ana Arias Castro

Original hipster nativity set

Gorilla Goodies is selling an original nativity set for this Christmas: the Hipster Nativity Set.
Can you describe the difference between this nativity set and the traditional one?

Have a look at this pictures from the Gorilla Goodies website:

Differences between Christmas in Britain and in the USA

Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Everything About Black Friday - Facts & Stats from Maps of World

Buy Nothing Day

Black Friday crowds

You have probably heard about Black Friday and all the offers and discounts stores offer today but, have you ever heard of the Buy Nothing Day?

BUY NOTHING DAY

Buy Nothing Day (BND) is an international day of protest against consumerism. In North America, Buy Nothing Day is held on the Friday after U.S. Thanksgiving, concurrent to Black Friday(November 27, 2015); elsewhere, it is held the following day, which is the last Saturday in November. Buy Nothing Day was founded in Vancouver by artist Ted Dave and then promoted by Adbusters magazine, based in Canada.

The first Buy Nothing Day was organized in Canada in September 1992 "as a day for society to examine the issue of over-consumption." In 1997, it was moved to the Friday after American Thanksgiving, also called "Black Friday", which is one of the ten busiest shopping days in the United States. In 2000, some advertisements by Adbusters promoting Buy Nothing Day were denied advertising time by almost all major television networks except for CNN. Soon, campaigns started appearing in the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, Austria, Germany, New Zealand, Japan, the Netherlands, France, Norway and Sweden. Participation now includes more than 65 nations.

Activities

Various gatherings and forms of protest have been used on Buy Nothing Day to draw attention to the problem of over-consumption:

• Credit card cut up: Participants stand in a shopping mall, shopping center, or store with a pair of scissors and a poster that advertises help for people who want to put an end to mounting debt and extortionate interest rates with one simple cut.
• Free, non-commercial street parties
• Sit-in
• Zombie walk: Participant "zombies" wander around shopping malls or other consumer havens with a blank stare. When asked what they are doing participants describe Buy Nothing Day.
• Whirl-mart: Participants silently steer their shopping carts around a shopping mall or store in a long, baffling conga line without putting anything in the carts or actually making any purchases.
• Public protests
• Wildcat General Strike: A strategy used for the 2009 Buy Nothing Day where participants not only do not buy anything for twenty-four hours but also keep their lights, televisions, computers and other non-essential appliances turned off, their cars parked, and their phones turned off or unplugged from sunrise to sunset.
• Buy Nothing Day hike: Rather than celebrating consumerism by shopping, participants celebrate The Earth and nature.
• Buy Nothing Critical Mass: As the monthly Critical Mass bicycle ride often falls on this day or near, rides in some cities acknowledge and celebrate Buy Nothing Day.
• Buy Nothing Day paddle along the San Francisco waterfront. This event is promoted by the Bay Area Sea Kayakers to kayak along the notoriously consumptive San Francisco waterfront.
• The Winter Coat Exchanges that started in Rhode Island and now have locations in Rhode Island, Kentucky, Utah and Oregon in which coats are collected from anyone who wants to donate, and anyone who needs a winter coat is welcome to take one.

Criticism

While critics of the day charge that Buy Nothing Day simply causes participants to buy the next day, Adbusters states that it "isn't just about changing your habits for one day" but "about starting a lasting lifestyle commitment to consuming less and producing less waste."

Other campaigns, such as Shift Your Shopping, attempt to redirect spending away from corporate chains and online giants toward locally owned, community-based businesses as a means to combat consumerism. Even some independent business advocates, such as the American Independent Business Alliance, recognize "Black Friday" frenzy does little for independent businesses and instead encourage people to consider giving gifts but not necessarily "things."

Information from Wikipedia

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving from Ana Arias Castro

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