Information from a calendar of annual human rights observances on the Morgantown City website.
January 17 - Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Established in 1983 and observed for the first time on January 20, 1986. Also known as King Service Day – Federal legislation signed in1994 challenged Americans to transform the King holiday into a day of citizen action and volunteer service.
January 18 - World Religion Day
Observance to proclaim the oneness of religion and the belief that world religion will unify the peoples of the earth.
January 27 - Holocaust Memorial Day
Annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust coinciding with the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp in 1945. The United Nations urges all its member states to honor Nazi era victims and to develop education programs to help prevent future genocides.
Information from Diversity Resources.
January 1 - Emancipation Proclamation (Black American)
On this day in 1863, President Lincoln declared all persons held as slaves would be free.
January 4 – Birthday of Louis Braille (People with Disabilities)
French educator Louis Braille created a system of reading and writing for those who are visually impaired. His system, known worldwide as “braille,” remains largely unchanged today.
January 6 – Feast of the Epiphany (Christian)
A festival in the Hindu faith that is dedicated to the Hindu religious sun god Surya.
January 14 – Makar Sankranti (Hindu)
Commemorates events associated with the birth of Jesus.
January 17 – Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Black American)
MLK Jr. was an American Baptist minister and activist, revered as one of the great leaders of the American civil rights movement.