[238] He initially opposed the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day,[239] but signed a veto-proof bill to create the holiday in 1983, and also alluded to claims that King was associated with communists during his career.[240] In 1984, he signed legislation intended to impose fines for fair housing discrimination offenses.[241] In March 1988, Reagan vetoed the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, but Congress overrode his veto. He had argued that the bill unreasonably increased the federal government's power and undermined the rights of churches and business owners.[242] Later in September, legislation was passed[243] to correct loopholes in the Fair Housing Act of 1968.[244]
Early in his presidency, Reagan appointed Clarence M. Pendleton Jr. as chair of the United States Commission on Civil Rights to criticism for politicizing the agency. Pendleton and Reagan's subsequent appointees steered the commission in line with Reagan's views on civil rights, arousing the ire of civil rights advocates.