Team,

Today, as we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy, I'm thinking about what his example means for Arizona — and why the Arizona Democratic Party celebrates his values of nonviolent civic engagement, dignity, and opportunity for all every single day.

Arizona has a complicated history with this holiday. We were the last state in the nation to recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and we're the only state that approved it by popular vote. That history matters, and it's worth remembering.

In 1986, Governor Bruce Babbitt established the holiday by executive order after the legislature failed to act. But in 1987, his successor, Evan Mecham, rescinded it as his first act in office. He called it "illegal" and eventually moved the observance to an unpaid Sunday.

What followed was a six-year political and economic conflict that put Arizona's values — and our economy — on the line. Major entertainers boycotted the state. In 1990, Arizona voters rejected two separate ballot measures to establish the holiday. The NFL responded by stripping Arizona of Super Bowl XXVII, costing our state an estimated $200 million.

Finally, in November 1992, Arizona voters approved the establishment of MLK Day. We celebrated our first official Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 18, 1993 — more than six years after the holiday became federal law.

I share this history because Dr. King's example reminds us that the work to create a fairer, more just state and country is ongoing. It took years of organizing, economic pressure, and civic engagement to do what should have been done immediately: honor a man who gave his life fighting for equality, justice, and dignity for all Americans.

That fight continues today.

At the Arizona Democratic Party, we honor Dr. King's legacy by working each day to build a state where everyone has dignity and opportunity, regardless of where they come from, what they look like, or how much money they have.

We organize in all 15 counties because Dr. King taught us that justice isn't just for some communities, it's for all of them. We register voters because he believed in the power of civic participation to transform our democracy. We stand up against hatred and extremism because he showed us that silence in the face of injustice is complicity.

We defend voting rights, fight for affordable healthcare, protect workers' dignity, and build coalitions across lines of difference — because that's what Dr. King's vision demands of us.

Arizona was the last state to recognize this holiday. But we can be the first to live up to the values it represents: equality, justice, dignity, and opportunity for all.

Thank you for supporting all we do to build that Arizona — not just today, but every day.

In solidarity,

Charlene Fernandez
Chair, Arizona Democratic Party