I remember being particularly focused on one of them: Robert Kennedy was somber, even tearful at times, as he knelt and crossed himself and prayed with his wife, Ethel, before the service began. [93] During a presentation in May 2000, King was asked if the human race would ever become "color blind". King died late Tuesday in Santa Monica,. "She was a warm and gentle person and was thoroughly committed to the movement and found her own means of expressing that commitment through drama. King spoke from the cathedral's Canterbury Pulpit, the same pulpit Martin Luther King Jr. spoke from on his last Sunday sermon before his death. [12] After having not seen her father for five weeks while he was in jail, she finally was able to meet with him alongside both of her brothers for less than half an hour. Yolanda died due to a chronic heart condition in 2007. Born on Nov. 17, 1955, in Montgomery, Ala., Yolanda Denise King was just an infant when her home was bombed amid the turbulent civil rights era. 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. It's a dream about freedomfreedom from oppression, from exploitation, from poverty the dream of a nation and a world where each and every child will have the opportunity to simply be the very best that they can be." King received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, a master's degree in theater from New York University,[59] and an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Marywood University. 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. "[24] King appeared in the film Selma, Lord, Selma, based on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches as Miss Bright. Born on Nov. 17, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, King was just an infant when her home was bombed during the turbulent civil rights era. [83] During July 1993, she agreed to speak at the Coral Springs City Centre for airfare and a fee in January 1994. "Daughters of M.L. She was the godmother of acclaimed actress RaVen Larrymore Kelly. She was 51. Maybe when I'm older I won't be able to stand Yoki, but Yolanda sounds so formal!" When she returned home, she rushed to confront her mother about his death and even ignored her grandfather, Martin Luther King, Sr., to tell her mother what she had heard and that they would not get their "freedom now." She just moved upstairs." Wage growth is slowing. . [28] display: none; We must cease our premature celebration [about civil rights already achieved] and get back to the struggle. 2007 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. She stated, "It is entirely appropriate that you would choose to focus on multiculturalism as the opening activity of Black History Month. [68], She celebrated her father's holiday on January 16, 1986, and attended a breakfast in Chicago with Mayor Harold Washington. Showing Editorial results for yolanda king. Yolanda Denise King was an African-American activist, actress and first-born child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. [42] Of the King children, Yolanda was the only one to attend Grady High School, as her siblings would go to different high schools following her graduation. "Yolanda was lovely. [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. [40] At that time, King still did not know what she wanted to do with her life, but acknowledged that many wanted her to be a preacher. The statement was made while she was in the presence of 800 people who gathered to honor her father at the Everett Theatre. King died late Tuesday in Santa Monica, Calif., at age 51. She played Rosa Parks in the 1978 miniseries "King" and appeared in "Ghosts of Mississippi" a drama based on the true story of a white supremacist accused of the assassination of civil rights activist Medgar Evers (via NPR). [80] That same year, she also spoke at Indiana University. She has mostly been in the news. [85] In October, she uttered her belief that her father's dream of integration was not fully understood. Martin Luther King Jr., has died, said Steve Klein, a spokesman for the King Center. Her career as an actor and speaker combined her father's activism with her own artistic pursuits. Klein said the family did not know the cause of death but that relatives think it might have been a heart problem. <img src="http://members.cox.net/jnashatty/P1020216.jpg" height=450 width=600> "[101] "I struggled with a lot of the legacy for a long time, probably actually into my 30s before I really made peace with it," Yolanda stated in 2005 on "Western Skies", a public radio show based in Colorado. I watched as the four King children grew into adulthood, then middle age, all single. She recalled having met a friend that was scared of being acquainted with her, because of her father's identity and expressed her thoughts in the colleges she wished to attend. She took classes taught by Manning Marable and Johnnella Butler, and became satisfied with her choice of a college. Yolanda King was the founder and head of Higher Ground Productions, billed as a "gateway for inner peace, unity and global transformation." King; two brothers, Martin Luther King III and Dexter Scott King; and an extended family. 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". "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. Bernice King, Yolanda King and Martin Luther King III. In 1960, they moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where she was immersed in social upheaval. She returned to Smith College on January 26, 1989. He had come up for the festivities, and he had two friends with him. [22] She ranked in the top 10 percent of her class. [67] That same year, she presented the Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Public Service to Chicago Mayor Harold Washington during the fifth annual Ebony American Black Achievement Awards. Funeral arrangements would be announced later, the family said in a brief statement. Her death came less than a year and a half after her mother, Coretta Scott King, died in January 2006. Born on Nov. 17, 1955, in Montgomery, Ala., King was just an infant when her home was bombed during the turbulent civil rights era. The cause of death was believed to be heart disease. Market data provided by Factset. She founded a production company called Higher Ground Productions. "I'm Yoki," Yolanda King said, smiling. Yolanda King, the oldest child of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., died on May 15, 2007, in Santa Monica, California, at the age of 51.Her career as an actor and speaker combined her father's activism with her own artistic pursuits. Yolanda King: 'We will fulfil my grandfather's dream' The granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr speaks at the 2020 March on Washington. In January 2004, King referred to her father as a king, but not as one who "sat on a throne, but one who sat in a dark Birmingham jail. [51], After graduating from high school, she went to Smith College. Funeral arrangements would be announced later, the family said in a statement. May 24, 2007 #1 A friend of mines sent me these photos, so I cannot verify the authenticity.I think she looks beautiful. She called for Americans to memorialize those who gave their lives for "the struggle for peace and justice. She also found "great irony" in President Ronald Reagan having signed a bill to make Martin Luther King Jr. Day a national holiday. She was also on the student council. She was helping the association raise awareness, especially among blacks, about stroke. "[26] Coretta King wrote in her memoirs, My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr., that "Martin always said that Yoki came at a time in his life when he needed something to take his mind off the tremendous pressures that bore down upon him. "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. News & Notes remembers Yolanda King, eldest daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. She passed away Tuesday at the age of 51. [79] King stressed in 1992 that love would help people make their mark on the world. The four King children gathered at the February 2006 funeral of their mother, Coretta Scott King. Yolanda Denise King (November 17, 1955 May 15, 2007) was an African-American activist, actress and first-born child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King who pursued artistic and entertainment endeavors and public speaking. On her company's Web site, King described her mission as encouraging personal growth and positive social change. CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat" 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. I am in direct contact with her spirit, and that has given me so much peace and so much strength.". Around an hour later,[113] King collapsed in the Santa Monica, California home of Philip Madison Jones, her brother Dexter King's best friend, and could not be revived. Despite this wish, she acknowledged that this was of no ease and expressed happiness that her father had changed many things, and even made some people gain self-esteem. "[87] In July 1994, after seeing some photographs of her father prior to his death, Yolanda lamented that "this [had] brought back a lot of memories. In an interview with The Baltimore Sun in 1998, Ms. King said acting had liberated her, not least the parts unrelated to her family history. Jesse Jackson stated that King "lived with a lot of the trauma of our struggle. 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. Yolanda King is survived by her sister, the Rev. [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. [31], King was visited by Mrs. Kennedy before her father's funeral. She was 51.. She and her mother, at the time of the bomb's detonation, were in the rear section of their home. 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. During the course of her lifetime, King's name was mispronounced to the point that it bothered her. [25], She kicked off Martin Luther King Jr. Day by starting a week-long celebration on January 12, 1987, and talked to students about opportunities that they had at that point which their parents and grandparents did not have. However, she was still misjudged and mistrusted because of her skin color, based on perceptions founded solely upon her relationship with her father. She was 51 King. [86], On February 1, 1994, King attempted to speak before a diverse class of students at North Central College. She was the most visible and outspoken among the Kings' four children during activities honoring this year's Martin Luther King Day in January, the first since Coretta Scott King's death. He may be dead physically, and one day I am going to see him again".[43]. Neither she nor her mother was injured when the device exploded on the front porch. 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. [130] During a 2009 reunion at her alma mater Smith College, a walk was done in her memory by fellow alumnae.[131]. [15], On November 22, 1963, when U.S. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, she learned of his death at school. The four King children gathered at the February 2006 funeral of their mother, Coretta Scott King. Yolanda was an advocate for racial and social justice, workers' rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, and general nonviolence. [47] In response to her role in the play and her own response to the role, a man wrote to Jet predicting that she would marry a white person before she was eighteen. [16] She predicted at that time that all of the "Negro leaders" would be killed and the non-leading African-Americans would agree to segregation. The event marked 57 years since King Jr delivered. She became an actress, ran a production company and appeared in numerous films, including "Ghosts of Mississippi," and as Rosa Parks in the 1978 miniseries "King.". Yolanda King wrote and produced plays; gave speeches to groups that included elementary schoolchildren and Fortune 500 corporations; and acted in commercial movies. "[54] On April 4, 1975, King joined her family in placing azaleas over her father's crypt, marking the seventh anniversary of his assassination.[55]. To Yolanda, it seemed as if adults naturally went to jail occasionally, because all those she knew seemed to do that. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. "We must keep reaching across the table and, in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, feed each other," said Yolanda, urging those who honor the Kings' work to question their own beliefs on prejudice and be a personal force for peace and love. In a twenty-four-minute-long speech, she brought up the presidential election of that year, and also quoted the words of Bobby Kennedy by recalling his line which he took from George Bernard Shaw, that of "Some men see things as they are and say why? [108] After Coretta died on January 30, 2006, Yolanda, like her siblings, attended her funeral. Her death came a year after her mother died. 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