State Rep calls Martin Luther King-Robert E. Lee shared holiday 'offensive'.
Mississippians will celebrate a civil rights leader and a Confederate general on Monday. Mississippi is one of three states — along with Arkansas and Alabama — that celebrate Robert E. Lee Day and Martin Luther King Day on the same holiday.
According to the Mississippi secretary of state's office, the Legislature passed House Bill 165 on March 30, 1910, to observe Robert E. Lee's birthday — January 19 — as a state holiday. President Ronald Reagan made Martin Luther King Day a federal holiday in 1983. The Mississippi State Legislature voted on February 12, 1987, to ratify the federal holiday, combining the two days, according to the state law library.
State Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson, said the measure was touted as a cost-saving maneuver; but also said he feels the move was made to slight King. "Every major issue in the state of Mississippi has the undercurrent of race to it. I wish it wasn’t the case," Horhn said. "The decision was made as a cost-saving measure, but many people then and now felt that it was a means to not give Dr. King his due and the singularity of recognition."
Democratic Second District Rep. Bennie Thompson said the combined holiday is "offensive."
"Once and for all, people should know that the Confederacy lost," Thompson said. "And Mississippi's celebrating Robert E. Lee on the same day as Martin Luther King Jr., is just an attempt to diminish Dr. King's legacy. To celebrate a man who fought to keep people in bondage is offensive, and Robert E. Lee should not be celebrated alongside a great fighter for freedom and equality"
Recently, Republican Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson called for the two holidays to be separated by legislative action. "I would like to see his special day, his Martin Luther King Day, be a separate day to himself and to the recognition of his role in the civil rights movement in our country," Hutchinson said. "It's important that that day be distinguished and separate and focused on that civil rights struggle and what he personally did in that effort, the great leader he was during that cause. They need to be distinguished and separate."
Horhn agreed with Hutchinson's move, saying, "I would hope that Mississippi would follow suit one day to give Dr. King the attention and acknowledgement that his work deserves. It’s not to say that Robert E. Lee didn’t have major accomplishments, but the work of Dr. King changed this country and it changed it for the better."
Clay Chandler, spokesman for Gov. Phil Bryant, said separating the two holidays could be an expense to the state. "Gov. Bryant would not necessarily be opposed to separating the holidays but would be concerned about adding another day off the state government, as one of the reasons for combining them was to save tax dollars," Chandler said.
Horhn said he was not optimistic that Mississippi would soon separate the holidays. "The Mississippi Legislature has long experienced great difficulty in doing something legislatively that they might perceive to be done just for the African-American community," he said. "The decision to combine the holidays is a good example of that. The proposal being missed, however, is that Dr. King, didn’t work solely for the benefit of the African-American community. He was able to have an impact for everyone seeking equal opportunity under the law."
At: http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2016/01/17/mlk-and-robert-e-lee-share-holiday/78864878/