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This Day in Black History: Nov. 2, 1983

Martin Luther King Jr. Day signed into law.

President Ronald Reagan signed the King Holiday Bill into law, designating the third Monday in January as Martin Luther King Jr. Day. At the time, only 27 states and Washington, D.C. honored the holiday. Seventeen years later, in 2000, South Carolina became the last state to sign a bill recognizing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a paid holiday.

 (Photo: dpa /Landov)

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