Martin Luther King III
Martin Luther King III | |
---|---|
4th President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference | |
In office 1997–2004 | |
Preceded by | Joseph Lowery |
Succeeded by | Fred Shuttlesworth |
Personal details | |
Born | Montgomery, Alabama, U.S. | October 23, 1957
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse |
Arndrea Waters (m. 2006) |
Children | Yolanda Renee King |
Parent | Martin Luther King Jr. (father) Coretta Scott King (mother) |
Relatives | Yolanda King (sister) Dexter King (brother) Bernice King (sister) Alveda King (cousin) Edythe Scott Bagley (maternal aunt) Christine King Farris (paternal aunt) Martin Luther King Sr. (grandfather) |
Education | Morehouse College (BA) |
Martin Luther King III (born October 23, 1957) is an American
Early life
Martin Luther King III was born on October 23, 1957, at St. Jude's Hospital in Montgomery, Alabama[1] to civil rights advocates Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. His mother had reservations about naming him after his famous father, "realizing the burdens it can create for the child,"[2] but King Jr. always wanted to name his son Martin Luther III. King's birth occurred as his father was speaking to members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and he announced his son's name after being told of the birth.[3] King's birth caused much of his mother's time to be taken away from her artistry and she spent the remainder of his birth year caring for him and his older sister Yolanda.[4]
Martin Luther King III has three siblings:
King was ten years old when his father was assassinated. Years prior to his father's death, Harry Belafonte set up a trust fund for King and his siblings.[6] King attended Spring Street Elementary School but transferred to The Galloway School following his father's assassination. King received his B.A. degree in political science from Morehouse College in 1979, the same school where his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather attended. King is a fraternity brother/member of Alpha Phi Alpha, as was his father. King lived his teen years with his mother in their home in Atlanta's Vine City neighborhood.[7]
Adult life and career
On June 26, 1985, King was arrested, along with his mother and his sister Bernice, while taking part in an anti-apartheid protest at the
On June 9, 1986, he announced his candidacy for the
Alongside
In 2019 King urged Texas to grant a reprieve to death row inmate Rodney Reed[20][21] and in 2020 he urged Alabama to stop the execution of Nathaniel Woods.[22][23]
Working with President Barack Obama
Martin Luther King III spoke on behalf of the 2008 Democratic Party presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama, at the Democratic National Convention on August 28, 2008. The event marked the 45th anniversary of the "I Have a Dream" speech and the first time an African American accepted the presidential nomination of a major party.[24] King said his father would be "proud of Barack Obama, proud of the party that nominated him, and proud of the America that will elect him".[25] However, he also warned that his father's dream would not be completely fulfilled even if Obama won the presidency, because the country was suffering from a poor health care system, education system, housing market and justice system, and that "we all have to roll up our sleeves and do work to ensure that the dream that he shared can be fulfilled".[24]
On January 19, 2009, the Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday, King joined Obama in painting and refurbishing the Sasha Bruce Youthwork shelter for homeless teens in Northeast Washington for the nationwide day of community service.[26]
Michael Jackson's memorial service
Martin Luther King III gave a tribute at
Public response during Trump impeachment trial
On Monday, February 3, 2020,
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
In 1997, King was unanimously elected to head the
Within only a few months of taking the position, however, King was criticized by the SCLC board for failing to answer their correspondence or to take up issues important to the organization. The board also felt he failed to demonstrate against national issues the SCLC would previously have protested, including the disenfranchisement of black voters in the
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference suspended King from the presidency in June 2001, concerned that he was letting the organization drift into inaction. The group's national chairman at the time, Claud Young, sent a June 25 letter to King that read, "You have consistently been insubordinate and displayed inappropriate, obstinate behavior in the (negligent) carrying out of your duties as president of SCLC."[30] King was reinstated only one week later after promising to take a more active role. Young said of the suspension, "I felt we had to use a two-by-four to get his attention. Well, it got his attention all right."[30] After he was reinstated, King prepared a four-year plan outlining a stronger direction for the organization, agreeing to dismiss McMorris and announcing plans to present a strong challenge to the Bush administration in an August convention in Montgomery, Alabama.[30] In a rally on August 5, 2001, in Montgomery, SCLC leaders, including Rev. Joseph Lowery, former United Nations Ambassador Andrew Young and Rev. Jesse Jackson all pledged their support for King. "I sit beside my successor, to assure him of my love and support," said Rev. Lowery.[33] King said he also planned to concentrate on racial profiling, prisoners' rights and closing the digital divide between whites and blacks.[2] However, King also suggested the group needed a new approach, stating, "We must not allow our lust for 'temporal gratification' to blind us from making difficult decisions to effect future generations."[30]
Drum Major Institute
King is the Chairman of Drum Major Institute, which was founded by his father Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement. In a media interview, King spoke about the task of the institute to "rid the world of the triple evils that my father and my mother (Coretta Scott King) talked about: those are the evils of poverty, racism and violence. We believe the values of peace, justice and equity help us to eradicate those triple evils."[34]
King Center
In 2006, King founded an organization called Realizing the Dream, which has been absorbed into The King Center under King as president. CEO Dexter King had accused Martin of establishing the foundation to make money off their parents' legacy that should go to the King Center.[35] On April 4, 2008, the fortieth anniversary of his father's death, King and Al Sharpton led a march around Memphis, Tennessee. There, he visited the Lorraine Motel for the first time since his father's death and placed a wreath where he stood before being shot. As he spoke to those who participated in the march, King called for them to continue his father's fight and promoted Realizing the Dream, which he said sought to eliminate poverty.[36]
Lawsuits involving Dexter King
In July 2008, King and his sister Bernice filed a lawsuit against their brother Dexter, accusing him of improperly taking money from the estate of their late mother and transferring it to the Estate of Martin Luther King Jr. Inc., where Dexter serves as president. According to the suit, Dexter failed to keep Martin and Bernice informed about the company's financial affairs. It alleged the company's assets were being "misapplied or wasted",[17] and demanded that Dexter produce documents pertaining to the 2006 sale of some of their father's documents.[17] In response, Dexter accused his siblings of continuously using their parents' legacy for their own benefit and "to further their own personal and religious agendas".[35] Although critics said the lawsuit was at odds with their father's message and legacy, King III maintained it was in keeping with his history of negotiation and nonviolent direct action, claiming, "My father also used the court system."[37]
Dexter filed a similar countersuit against Martin and Bernice on August 18, 2008, claiming they breached their duties to the King Center and their father's estate, misused assets belonging to the center and kept money that should have gone back to the center and estate. Among the claims in the suit were that Martin improperly kept a $55,000 Lincoln Navigator SUV donated to the King Center for his own personal use, and that he "commandeered a reception"[35] being held at the King Center and "turned it into his own wedding reception".[35] Dexter claimed he made numerous attempts to get his siblings to stop such misuses of power but was unsuccessful. King III's lawyer, Jock Smith, denied the allegations as petty and misguided, and said the suit demonstrates Dexter King's misuse of power and his history of making poor decisions involving the Center without seeking proper input from his siblings.[35]
In October 2008, King III had not seen his brother since June, and Dexter had yet to meet his niece, Yolanda. Martin, Bernice, and Dexter have each expressed love for each other and hope that they will reconcile once their legal matters have been resolved.[37] In October 2009, Martin and his siblings settled the lawsuit out of court.
Reconciliation with siblings and return to King Center
On April 6, 2010, Martin Luther King III, brother Dexter King, and sister Bernice King issued a joint statement, announcing the re-election of Martin Luther King III as president and CEO of The King Center. "It's the right time, and Martin is in the right place to take this great organization forward," Dexter King said in a statement. Bernice King said she is "proud that my brothers and I are speaking with one voice to communicate our parents' legacy to the world". Martin King added, "We are definitely working together. My brother and sister and I are constantly in communication. ... It's a great time for us."[38] As president of The King Center, King has been credited with spearheading an innovative "King Center Imaging Project" in partnership with JPMorgan Chase, which is digitizing and photographing an estimated 200,000 historic documents, including his father's speeches, sermons, correspondence and other writings and making the documents available on-line to the world.[39] In addition, King launched "The King Center Audio and Visual Digitization Project" in partnership with Syracuse University which will "preserve and digitize some 3,500 hours of audio and video footage" of his father.[40] He has also developed a $100 million renovation plan to upgrade The King Center's Freedom Hall Complex, the first major improvement in the center's site and facilities in its 30-year history.[41]
Along with Reverend
While it is commendable that [Glenn Beck's] rally will honor the brave men and women of our armed forces ... [its] organizers present this event as also honoring the ideals and contributions of Martin Luther King Jr. ... My father ... would be the first to say that those participating in Beck's rally have the right to express their views. But his dream rejected hateful rhetoric and all forms of bigotry or discrimination, whether directed at race, faith, nationality, sexual orientation or political beliefs. ... Throughout his life he advocated compassion for the poor. ... Profoundly religious ... my father did not claim to have an exclusionary "plan" that laid out God's word for only one group or ideology. ... I pray that all Americans will embrace the challenge of social justice and the unifying spirit that my father shared with his compatriots.[43]
On April 4, 2011, the 43rd anniversary of the assassination of his father, King helped to lead nationwide demonstrations against initiatives to eliminate and undermine
In August 2013, King went to Philadelphia, where he joined Mayor
King appeared on MSNBC's The Cycle on May 9, 2014. He was asked by co-host
Ferguson, Missouri
In August 2014, King addressed the
Other pursuits and interests
In January 2011, it was reported that King would attempt to become a "
Ministers March for Justice
On August 28, 2017, King marched with Al Sharpton in Washington D.C. for the Ministers March for Justice leading over 3,000 ministers to protest the policies of President Donald Trump. King was under major controversy when he agreed to meet with Trump in January 2017.[55]
2021 New York City mayoral election
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day January 18, 2021, a video was released in which King announced his endorsement of New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang, praising Yang's plan to provide a guaranteed minimum income like King's father had wanted and declaring that he was joining the campaign as a co-chair.[56]
Realizing the Dream
On January 15, 2024,
That night, Martin Luther King III appeared at
Several weeks later, on February 5, the Cincinnati Reds announced that it, too, had joined the Realizing the Dream initiative, with King III appearing at the Cincinnati's Great American Ball Park for the occasion.[59]
Family
In May 2006, Martin Luther King III married his longtime partner, Arndrea Waters.
Honors and awards
On February 5, 2006, King, accompanied by the nieces and nephews of
On March 29, 2008, King threw out the first pitch at the Major League Baseball Civil Rights Game.
On September 19, 2010, King received the Ramakrishna Bajaj Memorial Global Award for outstanding contributions to the promotion of human rights at the 26th Anniversary Global Awards of the Priyadarshni Academy in Mumbai, India.[65]
On September 29, 2015, King was awarded the Humanitarian Award by the Montreal Black Film Festival.[66]
References
- ^ Company, Johnson Publishing (February 20, 2006). Jet. Johnson Publishing Company.
- ^ a b c d Gettleman, Jeffrey (August 5, 2001). "M.L. King III: Father's path hard to follow". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 14, 2008.
- ^ Manheimer, p. 46.
- ^ Bagley, p. 148.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III – A Famous Father's Advice to Parents on Bullying". Vancouver Sun. October 14, 2013. Retrieved September 12, 2021.
- ^ "King's Kids Assured Education by Belafonte". Jet. April 18, 1968.
- ^ Chu, Louise (January 16, 2005). "Coretta Scott King was the victim of multiple burglaries, son says". Newspapers.com. The Macon Telegraph. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
Coretta Scott King, 77, lived in the family home she bought with her late husband since 1965... The house in southwest Atlanta's Vine City neighborhood...
- ^ Miller, Laurel E. (June 27, 1985). "Coretta King Arrested at Embassy". The Washington Post.
- ^ "Children Of King Arrested". Chicago Tribune News. January 8, 1986.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III to Run for Local Office". Los Angeles Times. June 10, 1986.
- ^ "King, Martin Luther, III". June 12, 2017.
- ^ "Our Campaigns - Fulton County Commission 01 - Special Election Race - Nov 02, 1993". www.ourcampaigns.com.
- ^ "Skandalakis shocks King". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. November 3, 1993. p. A1. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
- ISBN 978-0-419-19840-6.
- ^ Smothers, Ronald (October 30, 1993). "Seeking Identity Beyond 'King's Son'". The New York Times.
- ^ Johnson, Dave (April 16, 1989). "King and Kennedy refuse Death Penalty". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b c Fausset, Richard; Jarvie, Jenny (July 12, 2008). "Children of Martin Luther King Jr. embroiled in lawsuit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 28, 2008.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III Says Bodyguard Saved Mother From 'Crazy Man'". Jet. September 26, 1988.
- ^ Lakshmi, Rama (February 18, 2009). "Son Marks Martin Luther King's 1959 Visit to India". The Washington Post.
- ^ King, Michael (November 15, 2019). "Martin Luther King III joins chorus of voice seeking clemcy for Rodney Reed". WXIA-TV.
- ^ Reding, Shawna (November 15, 2019). "Martin Luther King III sends letter asking Gov. Abbott to stop Rodney Reed's execution". KVUE.
- ^ Associated Press. "Martin Luther King Jr.'s Son Asks Alabama to Stop Inmate's Upcoming Execution". Time Magazine. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
- ^ Morning Joe. "Martin Luther King III pushes to halt Nathaniel Woods' execution". MSNBC. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
- ^ a b Rodgers, Jacob. "DNC: Martin Luther King III speaks on historic anniversary." Fort Collins Weekly, August 28, 2008. Retrieved on August 28, 2008.
- ^ "Tonight we witness what has become of his dream..." Archived December 11, 2008, at the Wayback Machine New England Cable News, August 28, 2008. Retrieved on August 28, 2008.
- ^ Branigin, William; Rucker, Philip (January 20, 2009). "Obama Commemorates MLK Day with Service". The Washington Post.
- ^ Turner, Trish; Katherine Faulders, John Parkinson, Allison Pecorin and Stephanie Ebbs (February 4, 2020). "Trump impeachment trial: Closing arguments ahead of acquittal vote Wednesday". ABC News. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Budryk, Zack (February 4, 2020). "Martin Luther King III blasts Starr's use of King quote in impeachment trial". The Hill. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ King III, Martin Luther (February 4, 2020). "A STATEMENT FROM MARTIN LUTHER KING III ON KEN STARR'S INAPPROPRIATE REFERENCE OF MLK IN DEFENSE OF TRUMP". Twitter.com. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g Firestone, David (July 26, 2001). "A civil rights group suspends, then reinstates, its president". The New York Times. Retrieved August 28, 2008.
- ^ "Dick Gregory and Martin Luther King III Urge Black Men to Get Tested For Prostate Cancer". Jet. January 17, 2000.
- ^ "Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Family Commemorate 32nd Anniversary Of His Death". Jet. April 24, 2000.
- The Atlanta Constitution.
- ^ Booth, Georgina Lara Booth (April 20, 2021). "I HAVE A DREAM: Interview with Martin Luther King III, Arndrea King and 12-year-old Yolanda Renee King on Family, Love, Activism and their Dreams by Georgina Lara Booth". Mashable. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e Keefe, Bob (August 19, 2008), "King family lawsuit called 'disheartening'", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved September 20, 2008.
- ^ Waldron, Clarence (April 21, 2008). "King Remembered in Memphis 40 Years After Assassination". Jet.
- ^ a b Haines, Errin (October 19, 2008). "AP Exclusive: MLK siblings try to justify suit". Associated Press.
- ^ Chen, Eve (April 7, 2010). "King Siblings Reconcile; Martin Luther King III to Head Center Again". WXIA-TV. Archived from the original on July 22, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
- ^ Eversley, Melanie (January 16, 2012), "Martin Luther King Papers Go Online", USA Today.
- ^ McDowell, Scott. "Syracuse University and The King Center announce The King Center Audio and Visual Digitization Project", Inside Syracuse University. November 16, 2011.
- ^ Saporta, Maria (January 14, 2012). "MLK III's $100 million plan to upgrade the King Center". Atlanta Business Chronicle. SaportaReport.com. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
- ^ Keefe, Bob; Schneider, Craig (August 27, 2010). "Conservatively speaking, thousands will crowd the National Mall". Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- Washington Post.
- ^ King, Martin Luther III; Trumka, Richard (November 17, 2011). "Alabama's immigration law: Jim Crow revisited". CNN.
- ^ Gregg, Cherri (August 7, 2013). "Eldest Son of Dr. MLK Visits Philadelphia As 'I Have a Dream' Anniversary Draws Near". CBS Philly.
- ^ Rabouin, Dion (December 26, 2013). "Atlanta Daily World Looks Back at the Top Stories of 2013". Atlanta Daily World.
- ^ Wang, Stephanie (November 21, 2013). "DePauw University welcomes Martin Luther King III". IndyStar.
- ^ Quinn, Melissa (May 10, 2014). "MLK III shocks Touré: African-Americans should be engaged with the Tea Party". Red Alert Politics.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III speaks on Ferguson shooting, violence". KSDK.com. August 13, 2014.
- ^ Kiekow, Anthony (August 17, 2014). "Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III lead rally for Brown family". FOX2now.com.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III: My Father Would Be 'Greatly Disappointed' in Ferguson Violence". Fox. November 26, 2014. Archived from the original on February 20, 2015. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
- ^ "At Michael Brown's funeral, a call for social change". CNN. August 25, 2014.
- ^ "Report: King's son interested in buying into Mets". Yahoo! Sports. Associated Press. January 31, 2011. Retrieved January 31, 2011.
- ^ "Advisors". Let America Vote. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
- ^ "Clergy march for racial justice on anniversary of Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech". USA Today. August 28, 2017. Retrieved September 7, 2017.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III endorses Andrew Yang for Mayor of New York City". YouTube.
- ^ Knight, Joey (January 15, 2024). "Family of Martin Luther King Jr. aligns with NFL to carry on 'dream'". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ Knight, Joey (January 15, 2024). "Family of Martin Luther King Jr. aligns with NFL to carry on 'dream'". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ Martin, Alexis (February 5, 2024). "Reds announce 'Realizing the Dream' initiative with Martin Luther King family". WXIX-TV. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b c Zimmerman, Karl; et al. (May 26, 2008), "First MLK grandchild born", CNN, archived from the original on June 4, 2008, retrieved May 26, 2008,
The girl carries the first name of her father's sister, the oldest of the four King children, who died last year.
- ^ Suggs, Ernie (April 3, 2018), "Role as husband, father charts course for King family", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, archived from the original on January 18, 2021, retrieved October 1, 2021,
The former Arndrea Waters stuck around and years later found herself part of the King family.
- ^ Carissimo, Justin; Craver, Thom (March 24, 2018), "March for Our Lives 2018 -- live blog", CBS News website, archived from the original on March 27, 2018, retrieved January 7, 2019
- ^ "Bernice King on the 50 years since her father's death: 'This nation is awoke'". The Guardian. London. April 2, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- ^ "MLK Jr.'s granddaughter surprises rally crowd - CNN Video". CNN. March 24, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
- ^ "Recipients of Global Awards 2010". Priyadarshni Academy. Archived from the original on March 20, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
- ^ "Martin Luther King III receives Humanitarian Award". CTV Montreal News. September 30, 2015.
Works cited
- Manheimer, Ann S. (2004). Martin Luther King Jr: Dreaming of Equality. Carolrhoda Books. ISBN 978-1-57505-627-2.
- Bagley, Edythe Scott (2012). Desert Rose: The Life and Legacy of Coretta Scott King. University Alabama Press. ISBN 978-0-8173-1765-2.
External links
- Martin Luther King III at IMDb
- Appearances on C-SPAN