While most people have the day off, community groups are urging people to use Martin Luther King Day as a day on and volunteer their time to help.
Gov. Tony Evers, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes and Mayor Tom Barrett spent their morning at Lancaster Public School volunteering their time to paint some 100 murals inside the school.
"It's gratifying and in the spirit of what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. talked about," Barrett said. "Service and serving our communities. That's what we're seeing in action today."
"It's an extraordinarily busy day," Evers said. "But extraordinarily important. Seeing all the volunteers here to make sure the school looks great and supportive of the kids here, that's what it's all about."
"It's important to recognize what King's dream meant," Barnes said. "Not just the person, but the actual dream. What it meant to live in peace, harmony and justice. Striving towards equity because we're still in that same fight and struggle."
The inspiration for the day was emphasized during the largest MLK Day event in the state. The YMCA hosted its 23rd annual Martin Luther King Day Breakfast. Some 900 people were in attendance to honor the civil rights icon. However, the community groups at the event were urged to take their respect for Dr. King outside of the event and into the streets to make change."
That's what today is about," Ald. Cavalier Johnson said. "Getting people out of their comfort zone and out into the community to help everyone in Milwaukee."
The YMCA says this event is very special because it's not a fundraising event. Everyone is in attendance to honor the late civil rights leader and take his message out into the world.
