Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) joined dozens of her colleagues in supporting a resolution honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., emphasizing the civil rights leader's message of tolerance at a time, she says, when it's needed most.
"I'm proud to co-sponsor this resolution that honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by celebrating diversity, promoting tolerance, and condemning hate," Ansari wrote on social media. "As Trump continues to spread antagonism toward diverse communities in our country, we need Dr. King's voice now more than ever before."
The Arizona representative is among 47 House members backing the measure introduced by Congresswoman Shontel Brown (D-OH) on King's birthday, January 15th.
Honor Through Legislation
"King's legacy is not just something to celebrate, but something we must defend," Rep. Brown said, pointing to recent Trump administration initiatives. "The current administration is working overtime to erase Dr. King's message, demonize diversity, and erase Black History."
Brown characterized King's work as "the moral foundation of our nation's ongoing fight for equal rights," while warning that current policies disproportionately harm Black Americans through healthcare and food assistance reductions.
The measure commemorates King's 97th birthday and draws on his 1963 Letter from a Birmingham Jail, in which he wrote that "whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."
It specifically condemns bias against Black, Indigenous, Jewish, Asian-American, Pacific Islander, Muslim, and Hispanic communities, along with discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
The resolution calls on Americans to uphold King's teachings of justice, equality, peace, and tolerance while commemorating the civil rights leader who was assassinated in 1968.
It concludes with the following words from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: “Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.”
