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Freedom Train to Roll Through the Peninsula

From riding the Freedom Train to pausing for a moment of reflection, how you will celebrate this holiday?

Monday, Jan. 21 is Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

For some, the national holiday honoring the prominent civil rights activist is a time to give back and serve the community, be it through removing graffiti or picking up litter in a local park.

For others, it’s an opportunity to educate themselves about King and his life's work. 

On Monday, Jan. 21, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Association of Santa Clara Valley will charter Caltrain as its “Freedom Train” Monday, Jan. 21 up and down the Peninsula. 

Check out a video from 2011 to the right. 

The train will depart the San Jose Diridon Caltrain Station at 9:30 a.m., making stops at the Sunnyvale station at 9:45 a.m., Palo Alto station at 9:59 a.m. and San Mateo station at 10:22 a.m., arriving in San Francisco at approximately 10:55 a.m. 

There is no special southbound service. However, Freedom Train tickets will be accepted on southbound trains departing San Francisco after 1 p.m.

Freedom Train tickets are sold only by the association (Caltrain fare media is NOT valid). 

For Freedom Train schedule information or to purchase tickets, visit www.scvmlk.org, email mlkinfo@yahoo.com or call 408.861.5323. If Freedom Train tickets are sold out, people can buy a regular Caltrain ticket and take any regularly scheduled northbound train to join festivities in San Francisco.

So, tell us in the comments—what does Martin Luther King Jr. Day mean to you? What are you doing to commemorate King’s legacy?

The Holiday's History

Martin Luther King Jr. Day, now a U.S. holiday, took 15 years to create.

Legislation was first proposed by Congressman John Conyers (D-Michigan) four days after King was assassinated in 1968.

The bill was stalled, but Conyers, along with Rep. Shirley Chisholm (D-New York), pushed for the holiday every legislative session until it was finally passed in 1983, following civil rights marches in Washington. 

Then-president Ronald Reagan signed it into law. Yet it was not until 2000 that every U.S. state celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day by its name. Before then, states like Utah referred to the holiday more broadly as Human Rights Day. 

Now, the Corporation for National and Community Service has declared it an official U.S. Day of Service.

Frank Geefay January 14, 2013 at 07:08 pm
As a minority who has encountered discrimination in the past, Martin Luther King symbolizes the struggle to free all minorities regardless of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, obesity, etc. of oppressive laws, cruel treatment, and hateful discrimination, and attempts to change the American's mindset towards recognizing that America is a melting pot of all sorts of human beings. "Give me your tired your poor Your huddled masses yearning to breath free..." -Statue of Liberty welcoming inscription.
Rev. King's "I have a dream..." speech still reverberates true today as it did in 1963 for all oppressed minorities continuing to seek equal treatment, dignity and legitimacy. The Declaration of Independence states that "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." Martin Luther King echoed these sentiments in his "I have a dream..." speech as well as throughout his life. This is what Martin Luther King Jr. Day means to me. It is a reminder to all Americans that discrimination is bad, unjust, and simply un-American.
Robin January 14, 2013 at 09:55 pm
I loved doing this with my kids!
Andrew Peceimer January 15, 2013 at 03:19 pm
Frank why are are you frequenlty complaining about the US? If you had lived in another county do you really think you would have had the same wonderful life?
It is incredible how many Asians have come to the US not speaking English and never going on Welfare or other government progams but yet now are some of the wealthiest. Can anyone answer this simple occurance? Maybe working hard, investmenting and living below your means? The Democratic Obama machine trys to buy votes by taking money from the hardest working people and give to others who frequently do not take the same risks or work the same hours. Obama's slogan should be "Ask not what you can do for your country but what your country can do for you until the country goes bankrupt. Maybe those who feel cheated should read books by people like Oprah or Hermain Cain and realize your skin color will not guarantee your failure or success.
Frank Geefay January 16, 2013 at 01:56 am
Andrew, you might have a different point of view of things had you been born a racial minority.
I'm like you. I was born in the US and probably appreciate this country more than many white Americans. But America is not perfect and when I see injustice and inequities similar to what I experienced through life I want this country to change for the better. just as you do in your way when complaining about our President. As for reading Oprah, just because she is extremely successful does not mean she didn't struggle through life as a minority or wished that America could become a better nation. Read her book.
Mark Burns January 16, 2013 at 02:24 am
Koolaid. I'm buying stock in Koolaid. The whining and bitterness that is a part of every life is easy to express when you believe there is something tangible you can pin it on.
Mark Burns January 16, 2013 at 02:30 am
And I want to be clear that my comment has nothing to do with Dr. King's speech (which is as well worth reading as it is worth listening to). Nothing to do with the Holiday or the Freedom Train either.
Frank Geefay January 17, 2013 at 11:05 pm
But life can turn sweet when one Takes Action to turn bitterness into Kool-Aid.

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