The long weekend followed into a holiday Monday, traditionally celebrated as Martin Luther King Jr. Day in America.

It is a time when people think about Rosa Parks and segregation in the South, the March to Washington and the "I have a dream" speech by Mr. King Jr.

King was the driver behind the civil rights movement and his contributions to obtain equal rights for African Americans makes him equal other notables leaders of history. Mohandas Gandhi, who used nonviolence in India to obtain freedom from the British, was one of the models that King used to liberate Black Americans.

Nelson Mandela, who passed away recently, was another leader who used similar principles to free Black South Africans, calling for the right to vote.

Commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a historic milestone since the civil rights leader's birthday has been celebrated for fifty years. He is the only such person to have a holiday or a memorial day in his name other than American presidents.

The challenges of poverty, immigration, crime, and unemployment reverberated at a Boston remembrance event; King had studied in Boston before becoming a full time activist.

"This is not the America of Dr. King's dreams, and it must not be our America," said Senator Elizabeth Warren

"We must now rise up and we must make sure that we have a country that is fair," Senator Edward Markey echoed. He added that it was time to think about stopping cuts to unemployment insurance and housing benefits. He explained that the equality between black and white Americans was still not fair and it was time to introduce finance reform to restrict wealth and power of the elite. "We must seize this moment."

"True equality requires equality of opportunity," Attorney General Martha Coakley told reporters. "We know that is is not just about preventing discrimination. It is about inclusion."