January 16, 2026 By Tim Miller-Dempsey for the Hingham Human Rights Commission
As we observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 2026, some might wonder if this holiday has lost its relevance, a ceremonial nod to battles already won. After so many historic victories, we’ve seen a widespread pullback from diversity initiatives that were once widely embraced. If the pendulum has swung away from these efforts, does that mean the holiday’s purpose has expired?
The answer is no. In fact, we need MLK Day more than ever.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister who believed deeply in the moral fabric of America. From the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 through his assassination in 1968, King articulated a vision of community where justice, equal opportunity, and human dignity weren’t treated as mere abstract ideas. They were the foundation of the community itself.
King’s ideas were controversial even in his own time. He was criticized by white moderates who thought he was moving too fast and by more radical activists who thought he wasn’t moving fast enough. He was arrested many times and received death threats constantly. Yet he remained committed to nonviolent resistance and to finding common ground across divides. He famously said that the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice. But we too often forget King’s caveat…it only bends when people of goodwill bend it.
In Hingham, a community that has historically been predominantly white and affluent, MLK Day serves a particular purpose. It’s an annual reminder that the work of building an inclusive society isn’t just something that happens in other more diverse communities. It happens here. It happens in our schools, where our students are more diverse in their backgrounds and their self expression than they were a generation ago. It happens in our workplaces, where our businesses employ people from widely varied backgrounds. It happens in our neighborhoods, and in our local government. Hingham has the chance to “bend the arc of history toward justice”, and build a truly welcoming community, even if it brings the discomfort and growing pains that often accompany change. MLK Day asks us to lean into that discomfort with intention.
MLK Day matters in Hingham precisely because it transcends whatever political moment we’re living in. When programs that honor and respect diversity expand, MLK Day reminds us why inclusion matters as it brings us together in our shared humanity. When those same programs become defunded and shutter their doors, as many have this year, the holiday reminds us that underlying principles such as fairness, equal opportunity, human dignity, don’t disappear with the DEI initiatives. The work continues in how we treat our neighbors, hire our employees, welcome new families as neighbors, or respond when anyone in our community feels excluded.
In 2026, that work means wrestling with some difficult questions. How do we create pathways to success for people from all backgrounds in Hingham? How do we ensure that when a family of a different race, background, family structure, economic class, or culture moves to Hingham, they feel genuinely welcomed rather than merely tolerated?
The holiday serves another crucial function in our polarized moment: it models how to navigate disagreement with our principles intact. Can we live and work in a diverse community where we truly see and respect each other without abandoning our deeply held ideas of justice and inclusion? Dr. King held firm unmoving convictions, but he also built coalitions. He challenged unjust systems while appealing to widely shared values. He made people uncomfortable while inviting them into the conversation.
In Hingham, where politics can divide neighbors and our annual town meeting can become a battleground, King’s example offers a roadmap. We can hold different views about specific policies while sharing a commitment to dignity, fairness, and opportunity for all. We can disagree about methods while agreeing on fundamental goals. MLK Day isn’t about declaring victory or admitting defeat on any particular policy question. It’s about reconnecting with the moral arc Dr. King described, the arc that bends toward justice when people actively do the work to bend it that way.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day remains necessary because the work remains necessary, here in Hingham as much as anywhere. The core challenge Dr. King devoted his life to, creating a society where everyone has a fair shot and where we recognize our common humanity, is never finished. We still need MLK Day because we still need to be reminded that this work belongs to all of us, in every season, regardless of what party is in office. And we need to remember the man himself: flawed, brave, visionary, and determined to build a more just world, not by scoring political points but by appealing to our common values, beliefs, and convictions.