MLK’s Legacy

When President Obama takes the official oath of office on January 20, he will use Abraham Lincoln’s Bible. In the public ceremony the next day, he will use one belonging to Martin Luther King Jr. In August 2011, Gallup and USA Today asked Americans about King’s legacy. Fifty-one percent of respondents said King’s dream of racial equality had been realized, and 49 percent said it had not. Fifty-four percent of African Americans said his dream had been realized. In the poll, 94 percent had a favorable view of King. In 1966, 33 percent did.

Source: Gallup/USA Today, August 2011.