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King Day: A growing event of substance

Among the excellent attributes of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday is that it retains its focus from year to year.

The ideas and ideals that led to Memorial Day and Labor Day are kept alive by certain segments of the population. But to most people, their main purpose is to provide long weekends.

King Day, however, comes along each year and reminds us that we need to work to improve relations among people ... and not just between races.

It's a day on consciousness raising about how much more we are the same than different. Beyond that, it teaches us that there is value in those differences.

Let us pray that the observance stays that way. There is nothing wrong with a three-day weekend, but we need to remember there are more important things in our lives. Reinforcing the need to appreciate the dignity of all human beings certainly is one of them.

One of the topics at the A-T's editorial board sessions Monday was the growth of Martin Luther King Jr. day through the years into a major observance across the nation.

We all should thank those who have worked to make it that way. The response to their efforts shows that most Americans are willing to embrace an endeavor of substance when when is placed before them.