Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a revered social rights activist, Baptist minister and a leader of the American civil rights movement. Dr. King worked with Black communities to organize demonstrations and marches that challenged anti-Black racism, oppression and violence. Dr. King and other Black people within the civil rights movement risked their lives to advance the recognition of Black rights in the areas of poverty, wage discrimination, housing, education, justice and peace. Dr. King was tragically assassinated on April 4th, 1968. His life and achievements are now honoured on the third Monday of January every year.