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. Martin Luther King Jr. , Rev. Her accomplishments extended further to the publishing industry, where she authored several books, including "Open my Eyes, Open my Soul," which made it to print in 2003 (via Stanford). Though her mother kept her nave to the controversies so she could "fulfill [her] objective, which was to do the play", that did not stop her from learning of the negativity implemented from her role years later. The four King children gathered at the February 2006 funeral of their mother, Coretta Scott King. Yolanda died due to a chronic heart condition in 2007. [63] A few months after King and Shabazz met, the pair decided to collaborate on a theatrical work, resulting in Stepping into Tomorrow. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Being the oldest, she had to watch her three younger siblings; Martin Luther King III, Dexter King and Bernice King and referred to the three as independent when she watched them whenever their mother went out of town. [106] She became a spokesperson for the American Heart Association after her mother's stroke, promoting a campaign to raise awareness about strokes. Despite this, she did voice opposition to President Ronald Reagan's reluctance to sign the law establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day, her father's national holiday. On July 21, 1969, King's uncle and father's brother Alfred Daniel Williams King was found dead in the swimming pool of his home. 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." Mrs. King said the children attended because they wanted to. Staff writer Kevin Moran contributed to this report. Soon after, she heard of the event when a news bulletin popped up while she was washing dishes. NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates offers a personal note on Yolanda King. She returned to Smith College on January 26, 1989. [80] That same year, she also spoke at Indiana University. King and her brother Martin III bragged about their selflessness at school. Yolanda King is survived by her sister, the Rev. [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. Yolanda King: 'Open My Eyes, Open My Soul'. after numerous attempts to explain the issue to her, Yolanda finally understood. Sign In . Showing Editorial results for yolanda king. She was 51. [15], On November 22, 1963, when U.S. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, she learned of his death at school. Speaking last January in Atlanta at Ebenezer Baptist Church where her father preached for many years Yolanda exhorted those observing the national holiday that bears his name to remember that America has not yet achieved peace and racial equality. Her decision in 1971 to play a prostitute in a school production of Bill Manhoffs Owl and the Pussycat, which involved kissing a white man, scandalized the white and black communities. 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. From left: Dexter King, the Rev. Al Sharpton , U.S.. 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. Being a busy woman, her brother merely treated it as one of her hectic schedules. [79] King stressed in 1992 that love would help people make their mark on the world. In 1958, Dr. King narrowly escaped death when he was stabbed in a bookstore in Harlem. Many former classmates of both Grady High School and Smith College attended to remember her. [50] King would ultimately attend Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts after graduating from high school. But walking through the first part of the exhibit I felt that terror. "Volunteers and staff of the American Heart Association will hold the Power of Legacy dinner on Saturday evening, which will pay special tribute to King and her legacy.''. In the Fall of 1968, King attended Henry Grady Highschool, in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia, she was president of her sophomore and junior class, and vice president of her senior class. Martin Luther King Jr.'s eldest child who pursued her father's dream of racial harmony through acting and motivational speaking, has died. King, Malcolm X Tour With Play That Boosts Self Improvement", Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, "Yolanda King's Stage Direction; Using Theater to Fulfill Her Mission-and Her Father's Mission", "Coretta Scott King biography on Achievement.org", "King's Daughter Urges Cultures To Blend Talents", "Dr. King's 3 Children Visit Him; He Is Allowed Out of Jail Cell; Wife Says They 'Accept' His Absence From Home as in Aid of Negroes", "Dr. MLK speaks to his daughter abt Racism "Fun Town", "JFK's Still-Vibrant Example Continues to Inspire Millions", "Nobel's $$$ and Cents Interest King's Daughter", "Yolanda King, actor and Dr. Martin Luther King's Daughter, dies at 51", "Yolanda King helps others live their dreams", "Yoda King, 51; Child of Civil Rights Leader", "King's Daughter Says Poverty, War Top Issues", "Mrs. Kennedy Visits Mrs. King And 4 Children Before Funeral", "King's Kids Assured Education by Belafonte", "Dr. King's Father Leads Silent Prayer at Rights Leader's Grave", "The Vision Marches On With Martin Luther King Jr.'s Children", "Yolanda King, 51; Child of Civil Rights Leader", "King's Daughter Tells What His Famous Name is Doing to Her Life", "Yolanda King Uses Spotlight As Tool For Change", "Dr. King's Family Observes 7th Anniversary of Slaying", "Actress, Producer, Author Yolanda King '76 Dies", "Yolanda King, daughter of MLK, dies at age 51", "King, Malcom X kin get their act together", "King, Malcolm X Daughters' Play Will Be Staged", "Malcolm X's, King Children Are Soul Mates", "NEW YORK DAY BY DAY; Dr. King's Daughter Assails Her Generation", "Yolanda King, Harold Washington on Achievement Awards", "REAGAN TELLS PUPILS OF STRUGGLE WON BY DR. KING", "Black History Parade, King Speech Draw Thousands", "Daughters of King, Malcolm X Also Have a Message", "Son Dexter To Take Reign of The King Center in Atlanta", "2 Black Leaders' Daughters May Ignore Arizona Boycott", "Yolanda King Cancels Appearance in Arizona", "U.S. At that time, she was also called by Andrea Young, whose own father had insisted that she should. Maya Angelou wrote a tribute to her, which was read during the memorial service. Wage growth is slowing. "[109] She found her mother's personal papers in her home. We must cease our premature celebration [about civil rights already achieved] and get back to the struggle. She stated, "It is entirely appropriate that you would choose to focus on multiculturalism as the opening activity of Black History Month. Below, she speaks at a 2000 Human Rights Campaign gala. No blood children, maybe, but as Yolanda pointed out in an NPR interview a few years ago, when people feel empowered, they become part of the King legacy: "I think it takes that for people to be effective change agents and to be champions of peace in their own lives. Sometime after Martin Luther King's assassination, King told her mother "Mom, I'm not going to cry because my dad is not dead. "[126] Like her parents and siblings, King did not publicly affiliate with a political party. All three of her siblings lit a candle in her memory. [17] For Christmas 1963, King and her siblings accepted a sacrificial Christmas as appealed by their parents and only received a single gift. [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. King was assassinated in 1968, and Mrs. King died last year. display: none; In 1979, Yolanda met Attallah Shabazz, the eldest daughter of Malcolm X,[60] after arrangements had been made by Ebony Magazine to take a photograph of the two women together. The cause of death was believed to be heart disease. Jesse Jackson stated that King "lived with a lot of the trauma of our struggle. May 16, 2007 / 5:32 AM [41] Her inclinations were driven to be artistic, which did not suit the political aspects of her father's life. She was also on the board of the King Center. [84] During her speech, she mentioned that the fact that the poverty line in America among children had nearly tripled and urged people to "reach out" and "do what you can". FILE - In this Feb. 6, 2006, file photo, from left, the children of the Rev. ATLANTA Yolanda Denise King, the Rev. [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. Ms. Kings consistent goal was to infect her work, including her films, with her familys deeper purposes. Her death came less than a year and a half after her mother, Coretta Scott King, died in January 2006. [52] With her death, the only remaining members of King's father's immediate family were her grandfather Martin Luther King, Sr. and aunt Christine King Ferris. King became a human rights activist and actress. [65] In 1984, she was arrested in the view of her mother for having protested in front of the South African Embassy, in support of anti-apartheid views. [114] A public memorial for Yolanda King was held on May 24, 2007, at Ebenezer Baptist Church Horizon Sanctuary in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1978 she starred as Rosa Parks in the TV miniseries King (based on her father's life and released on DVD in 2005). [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. Yolanda King, shown here in a 2005 photograph, sought to encourage "personal growth and positive social change." She portrayed Rosa Parks, who sparked the civil rights movement by refusing to give up her bus seat in a miniseries, King (1978), and Betty Shabazz, the wife of Malcolm X, in Death of a Prophet (1981). This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. Neither she nor her mother was injured when the device exploded on the front porch. King outlived her mother by only 16 months, succumbing to complications related to a chronic heart condition on May 15, 2007. Yolanda Denise King, daughter and eldest child of civil rights leader the Rev. At her father's former Atlanta church, Ebenezer Baptist, she performed a series of one-actor skits that told stories including a girl's first ride on a desegregated bus and a college student's recollection of the 1963 desegregation of Birmingham, Alabama. She was 51.. Image Credit Birthday: November 17, 1955 ( Scorpio) Born In: Montgomery, Alabama, United States 26 15 Civil Rights Activists #23 Human Rights Activists #11 Voice Actresses #17 Quick Facts Also Known As: Yolanda Denise King Died At Age: 51 Family: father: Martin Luther King Jr. hide caption. [36] She did admit that, had he lived or he been listened to more, "we would be in a far better place. She then toured the country with the Christian Theater Artist Company, which she helped found. 2005 photograph, sought to encourage `` personal growth and positive social change ''! King outlived her mother was injured when the device exploded on the board the. Stated that King `` lived with a lot of the trauma of our struggle May,. 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