20 MLK Jr. Quotes For Instagram Captions To Honor The Day

When you recall the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr. is obviously one of the first people who comes to mind. King was living with his family in Montgomery, Alabama, and as a local pastor with a talent for public speaking, King became the spokesperson for the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the March On Washington in 1963. King's movement had many successes — it ended segregation on public transportation, his work gained national attention for the inequality black people faced in Alabama, and King was a key player in the establishment the 15th Amendment, which granted all African Americans the right to vote. Though most of us are excited to have the day off from work or school, honoring MLK Jr.'s work and legacy is about more than that. At the most basic level, one of the easiest ways to show your appreciation for MLK Jr. and his work is by using MLK Jr. quotes for Instagram captions.

Whether you're posing a photo of a serene garden or park, or posting an image from a historical civil rights museum or landmark in your area, you want to choose a respectful image that aligns with one of his quotes. One suggestion? Save your cute selfie for your next post. MLK Jr. Day is just as important and meaningful in today's America as it was when the national holiday was first officially founded in 1983, so you want to be careful not to distract from King's powerful messages. Consider re-gramming an MLK Jr. illustration that you like (just make sure you credit the image properly), or from a Black Lives Matters account. You can also get involved by donating to the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, or if you cannot make a donation, get your friends together and volunteer for a day at your local NAACP headquarters, an organization whose mission is to also fight racial inequality.

This year, MLK Jr. Day falls on Monday, Jan. 15. Showing solidarity with MLK Jr.'s historical messages can be a great way to stay connected with the point of the day, instead of just shifting your Sunday Scaries to Monday. MLK's words and message are still very relevant in 2018, and in a time when our country is more divided than ever, showing support for the causes that are important to you can be one easy way to get involved.

Once you've settled on the appropriate image to post, here are 20 of MLK Jr.'s most iconic quotes. Let them serve as reminders of the rights and liberties we all should be fighting for, together.

1. "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." — Martin Luther King Jr.

2. "The time is always right to do what is right." — Martin Luther King Jr.

3. "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." — Martin Luther King Jr.

4. "In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." — Martin Luther King Jr.

5. "Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend." — Martin Luther King Jr.

6. "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." — Martin Luther King Jr.

7. "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." — Martin Luther King Jr.

8. "We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope." — Martin Luther King Jr.

9. "We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now." — Martin Luther King Jr.

10. "Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?" — Martin Luther King Jr.

11. "I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." — Martin Luther King Jr.

12. "We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools." — Martin Luther King Jr.

13. "We are not makers of history. We are made by history." — Martin Luther King Jr.

14. "Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see." — Martin Luther King Jr.

15. "An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity." — Martin Luther King Jr.

16. "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." — Martin Luther King Jr.

17. "If a man has not discovered something that he will die for, he isn't fit to live." — Martin Luther King Jr.

18. "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." — Martin Luther King Jr.

19. "There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love." — Martin Luther King Jr.

20. "The quality, not the longevity, of one's life is what is important." — Martin Luther King Jr.

MLK Jr. Day is a time for self reflection. Think about how you want to leave your mark on the world, and do it.