CHICAGO (WLS) To celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day, many in Chicago and Illinois are observing a day of service.
A group of local and state leaders honored the call to service in Chicago, joining a citywide effort to help school children. Volunteers from City Year packed school supplies for students around the city. From its earliest days, the COVID pandemic forced us to take public service beyond traditional association of those working in government and broadened it to encompass every role we play in the lives of our fellow residents, said Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
Dr. King has a rich history in Chicago, leading marches in 1966 and even renting a West Side apartment for a while. Illinois was the first state to recognize him with an official holiday in 1973, pushed by then-state representative Harold Washington.