[39] On April 4, 1970, the second anniversary of her father's death, she and her sister Bernice attended their grandfather Martin Luther King, Sr.'s silent prayer for their father at his gravesite. [50] King would ultimately attend Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts after graduating from high school. King was an ardent activist for gay rights,[123][124] as was her mother; Coretta Scott protested many times over gay rights. Despite this, Shabazz still appeared in the state and performed in the play. "[91] In an interview with People magazine in 1999, she recalled when she first learned of her father's death and stated in her words that "to this day, my heart skips a beat every time I hear one of those special bulletins. NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates offers a personal note on Yolanda King. [61] Both were worried that they would not like each other due to their fathers' legacies. By the time she was an adult, she had grown to become a supporter of gay rights and an ally to the LGBT community, as was her mother. "We must keep reaching across the table and, in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, feed each other," King said. King and her brother Martin III bragged about their selflessness at school. Former Mayor Andrew Young, a lieutenant of her father's who has remained close to the family, said Yolanda King had just spoken at an event for the American Heart Association. King died late Tuesday in Santa Monica, Calif., at age 51. She founded a production company called Higher Ground Productions. She was born just two weeks before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus there, leading to the Montgomery bus boycott spearheaded by her father. She became a secondary caregiver to her younger siblings. She has mostly been in the news. [63][64] The theater company was based in New York City and Los Angeles and focused on addressing the issues that their fathers, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, spoke of in their lifetimes. } Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. She was 7 when her father mentioned her and her siblings in his 1963 speech at the March on Washington: "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.". or redistributed. Early on, she was aware of racism in her surroundings, especially when her father had to explain to her why she wasn't allowed to go to the amusement park known as "Funtown." [36], When asked about what pressures emerged from being a daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., King stated that "as soon as people heard me speak, they would compare me to my father My siblings had the same kind of pressure. Funeral arrangements would be announced later, the family said in a brief statement. Yolanda, King's nine-year-old granddaughter, made headlines just last month with her rousing speech at the March for Our Lives rally in Washington. [118], Despite this, she was quoted in January 2003 of saying that she was "a 100 percent, dyed-in-the-wool, card-carrying believer in 'The Dream'. Gamilah Lumumba Shabazz Gamilah was born in 1964, the year before her dad's death. Alongside the physician that took care of her mother, Dr. Maggie Mermin and her sister, Yolanda told the press that her mother was making progress on a daily basis and was expected to make a full recovery. King called her father's name and having to live up to it a "challenge" and recalled a friend when she first met a friend of hers, who believed she could not say anything to King but after beginning to know her, realized that she was "no worse than my other friends" and she "could say anything" to her. When her father was assassinated on April 4, 1968, the 12-year-old King showed her composure during the public funeral and mourning events. He added she was "thoroughly committed to the movement and found her own means of expressing that commitment through drama. 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When the Associated Press asked how she was dealing with her mother's death, she said(via NPR), "I connected with her spirit so strongly. Many in attendance did not know her, but came out of respect for the King family's history of peace protests and social justice. [46] Her grandfather Martin Luther King Sr. initially was not going to go to her performance due to opposition by locals, but changed his mind afterward. Stepping into Tomorrow led to the formation of Nucleus in the 1980s, a theater company which King and Shabazz founded. She wore the mantle of princess, and she wore it with dignity and charm," Lowery said. Ms. King graduated from Smith College and earned a master of fine arts degree from New York University. She was an actress and writer, known for King (1978), JAG (1995) and Hopscotch (1980). Jesse Jackson, an aide of Martin Luther King Jr. "The movement was in her DNA. She was the godmother of acclaimed actress RaVen Larrymore Kelly. The death comes just over a year after the death of her mother, Coretta Scott King a civil rights leader in her own right at the age of 78, of complications from ovarian cancer, and after a battle with the effects from a stroke. The event marked 57 years since King Jr delivered. The next year, Ms. Kings uncle A. D. King, her fathers sole brother, accidentally drowned. Yolanda King's career proved equally successful as she used both entertainment and oratory to advance her family's message. The four King children gathered at the February 2006 funeral of their mother, Coretta Scott King. Remember people with biographies & photos. ATLANTA (AP) On April 4, 1968, a movement lost its patriarch when the Rev. Klein said the family did not know the cause of death but think it might have been a heart problem. Yolanda King was born on November 17, 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, USA. Her deepest memories were the love of her father, who taught her to swim and playfully pummeled her but never spanked her. #inline-recirc-item--id-93e66a4a-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d ~ .item:nth-child(5) { Yolanda Denise King, daughter and eldest child of civil rights leader the Rev. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. A flag at The King Center, which King's mother founded in 1968 and where she was a board member, was lowered to half-staff on Wednesday. Yolanda King, the Rev. [32] After the funeral, she was visited by classmates from Spring Street Middle School with flowers and cards. Yolanda King was the most visible of the four children during this year's Martin Luther King Day in January, the first since her mother's death. She was also subject to some harassment by her classmates, describing it as the "era when students were making demands and many black students were closer to the teachings of Malcolm X, or what they thought were his teachings." . ", "Yolanda never wavered from a commitment to nonviolent social change and justice for all," he said. However, her father reassured her as she began to cry that she was "just as good" as anyone who went to Funtown, and that, one day in the "not too distant future", she was going to be able to go to "any town" along with "all of God's children". Her brother Martin III was born in 1957; brother Dexter in 1961; and sister Bernice in 1963. Positive reception came to this interview, and Yolanda was even called the "leader of the 16-year-olds" for her "calmness, her concern," and "her vision". [85] In October, she uttered her belief that her father's dream of integration was not fully understood. [130] During a 2009 reunion at her alma mater Smith College, a walk was done in her memory by fellow alumnae.[131]. In the early hours of May 19, 2007, King's body was brought to Atlanta, Georgia by private plane belonging to Bishop Eddie Long. But after finishing her sophomore year and returning home so she could work over the summer, her grandmother Alberta Williams King was killed on June 30, 1974. She stated in 2000 to USA Today, that her acting "allowed me to find an expression and outlet for the pain and anger I felt about losing my father,". King also voiced her dislike of the assumption that she would behave just like her mother and father, and the difficulty of being perceived as not being someone others could talk to. [110], She preached in January 2007 to an audience in Ebenezer Baptist Church urging them to be an oasis for peace and love, as well as to use her father's holiday as starting ground for their own interpretations of prejudice. [63], When presenting herself in 1980 to the GSA staff members, she stated: "Jim Crow [segregation] is dead, but his sophisticated cousin James Crow, Esq., is very much alive. May 16, 2007 / 5:32 AM Yolanda King, the eldest daughter of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King, has died in California, family friends said on Wednesday. She stroked her youngest child, Bernice, as the preschooler raised sad eyes to her mother and looked around in wonder at all the strangers in the church that had been home to three generations of Kings. Her death came less than a year and a half after her mother, Coretta Scott King, died in January 2006. When asked by a young boy what she remembered most about her father, she admitted that her father was not able to spend much time with her and the rest of her family. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Bernice King, Yolanda King and Martin Luther King III. The civil rights leader and wife Coretta Scott King were parents to four kids: sons Martin Luther King III, 65, and Dexter, 61, and daughters Yolanda and Bernice, 59. The head of the school was Walt Roberts, father of the actors Eric and Julia Roberts. King was the first national ambassador to the anti-stroke campaign and she helped spread the word about risk factors and warning signs of stroke, Davis said. "We must keep reaching across the table and, in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, feed each other," King said. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Yolanda died in May. The statement was made while she was in the presence of 800 people who gathered to honor her father at the Everett Theatre. The pair performed in around 50 cities a year and did lectures together, typically in school settings. [83] During July 1993, she agreed to speak at the Coral Springs City Centre for airfare and a fee in January 1994. She also urged the audience at Ebenezer to be a force for peace and love, and to use the King holiday each year in January to ask tough questions about their own beliefs on prejudice. Yolanda Denise King, who was born on Nov. 17, 1955, in Montgomery, Ala., lived virtually her entire life in the maelstrom of the civil rights revolution that her father and mother, Coretta Scott King, helped lead. Anyone can read what you share. Higher Ground Productions: www.yolanda-king.com, Yolanda King, daughter of MLK Jr., dies at 51. All rights reserved. Martin Luther King Jr., died late Tuesday in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 51. [114] A public memorial for Yolanda King was held on May 24, 2007, at Ebenezer Baptist Church Horizon Sanctuary in Atlanta, Georgia. King aroused controversy in high school for her role in a play. "Yolanda was lovely. King was born in the midst of the turbulent civil rights movement and was only an infant when the King home was bombed in 1956. I remember thinking she was sparkly a good, throaty laugh, good sense of humor, the ability to dramatically capture the room's attention. "[69] King started Black History Month of 1986 by giving a speech in Santa Ana, which called for the study of African-American history to not be "relegated to the shortest and coldest month of the year. Bernice A. 1894 shipwreck found in Lake Huron, confirming "powerful, tragic story", Garland to face Congress amid ongoing special counsel investigations, FBI chief says agency feels pandemic likely started with Chinese lab leak. King died late Tuesday in Santa Monica, Calif., said Steve Klein, a spokesman for the King Center. I dream things that never were and say why not?". Yolanda King: 'We will fulfil my grandfather's dream' The granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr speaks at the 2020 March on Washington. [20] Soon thereafter, they would be joined by their younger brother Dexter. . She held membership at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which her father helped found in 1957, and she was a notable advocate for non-violence. display: block; Martin Luther King Jr. 's eldest child who pursued her father's dream of racial harmony through drama and motivational speaking, has died. "[100] While in Dallas in March 2004, King related; "It's only in the past half-dozen years or so that I have felt comfortable in my own skin. Dr. King was assassinated in 1968, and Mrs. King died last year. It was the first time she had ever been arrested. [66], She showed dissatisfaction with her "generation" on January 20, 1985, and referred to them as being "laid-back and unconcerned", and "forgetting the sacrifices that allowed them to get away with being so laid-back". . She died on May 15, 2007 in Santa Monica, California, USA. Three officers shot, standoff follows in Kansas City, Mo., police say, Vanessa Bryant, family settles claims over Kobe crash site photos for $28.5M, Flying bug found at Walmart turns out to be rare Jurassic-era insect, Pennsylvania police seized gloves, flashlight from home of Idaho murders suspect, CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat". [86], On February 1, 1994, King attempted to speak before a diverse class of students at North Central College. Martin Luther King III uttered that "Yolanda is still in business. Young said she was going to her brother Dexter's home when she collapsed in the doorway and "they were not able to revive her.". [89], In the fall of 1995, at age 39, she joined Ilyasah Shabazz and Reena Evers in saluting their mothers as they chaired an attempt at registering one million African-American women to vote in the presidential election of 1996. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot loses reelection bid, Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students. Yolanda, Martin, Dexter and Bernice King lost their father. [44] The practice of going to her father's grave on the anniversary of either his birth or assassination became an annual ritual for the King family to mourn his death. On her company's Web site, King described her mission as encouraging personal growth and positive social change. An important early memory was that she wanted to go to Funtown, a local amusement park, with the rest of her class, but was barred from doing so due to her race. Coretta Scott King began to decline in health after suffering a stroke in August 2005. CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat" Klein said the family did not know the cause of death but that relatives think it might have been a heart problem. When he did, she would play and swim with him. The children referred to her father as an "Uncle Tom" and she was scared that he would go down in history as such. FILE - In this Feb. 6, 2006, file photo, from left, the children of the Rev. Yolanda King, 51, Actor and Dr. King's Daughter, Dies By Douglas Martin May 17, 2007 Yolanda King, the eldest child of the Rev. He told her that there were many whites who were not racist and wanted her to go but there were many who were and did not want her to go. She was helping the association raise awareness, especially among blacks, about stroke. Oliver Lang/AFP/Getty Images At the time of the honor, King said that their production company had been approached by organizations seeking to arrange special staging of the play for gang members before May 1, when the show's run would end. Klein said the family did not know the cause of death but that relatives think it might have been a heart problem. [80] That same year, she also spoke at Indiana University. There, she joined hands with her siblings and mother along with other civil rights activists, singing We Shall Overcome. [34] King and her siblings were assured an education thanks to the help of Harry Belafonte, who set up a trust fund for them years prior to their father's death. [13][14] The "commitment" to diverse members in the audience and the play itself, was what represented the opportunities for which King fought. King recalled that her mother had been the main parent and dominant figure in their home, while her father was often away. [95] She, her brother Martin Luther King III and Al Sharpton sang We Shall Overcome in front of "The Sphere", which stood atop the World Trade Center prior to the September 11 attacks.[96]. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who melded her father's. "[117], To the time of her death, King continued to deny that her father's dreams and ideals would be fulfilled during her lifetime. Family (2) Trivia (7) Daughter of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King. We had cups of tea because it was so frigid that night, and then they were gone. Bernice A. Below, she speaks at a 2000 Human Rights Campaign gala. Father's death: 1968 Teenage years and high school: 1968-1972 Early adulthood College: 1972-1976 . King; two brothers, Martin Luther King III and Dexter Scott King; and an extended family. "[126] Like her parents and siblings, King did not publicly affiliate with a political party. (After all, she was a theater major.) [39] During a Sunday visit to Church, King was forced to stand before the congregation and explain her actions. <img src="http://members.cox.net/jnashatty/P1020216.jpg" height=450 width=600> Yolanda at that same ceremony used her craft as an actress to deliver a tribute to her parents, performing a series of skits telling stories including a girl's first ride on a desegregated bus and a college student's recollection of the 1963 desegregation of Birmingham, Ala. "[27], On the evening of April 4, 1968, when she was 12, Yolanda returned with her mother from Easter-dress shopping when Jesse Jackson called the family and reported that her father had been shot. I have chosen to continue to promote 'we're one, the oneness of us, and shine the spotlight,' as my father did. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. 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