Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King has died. What a loss. I was thinking that she was married to Dr. King for 15 years, then she worked tirelessly to maintain her husband’s legacy for 37 more years! She became a human rights leader in her own right.
I think I first saw her when she spoke at the rally at the end of the march in the winter of 1987. A crowd of thousands marched in Forsyth County after a smaller march the previous week had been attacked back by racists. That’s a long story for another day, but man, what an experience! (Read the paragraph beginning "In 1987…" for more information.)
I got a chance to meet her when I worked as a volunteer in the Media Department of the King Center as a Winter Term project while at Oberlin. I was brought into her office by "Rocky," this awesome biker guy who worked there, and formally introduced to her. Of course, she was very pleasant and welcoming. I remember thinking, "Holy shit! It’s Dr. King’s wife!" But again, she was more than just Dr King’s wife. She founded The King Center and she "kept the dream alive" for almost as many years as Martin was alive. She was a distinguished diplomat, and she made a difference.
Comment by parental unit
January 31, 2006 @ 4:16 pm
And we missed the bus and got to see the trucks with confederate flags on that dark overpass and the the bus that finally came broke down and we got to walk the gamut up Auburn Avenue to the King Center. We thought going on that march was going to be a “growth experience” for you, but it was much more.
She did keep it alive. I kind of wish more people were working at that right now!