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. [5] She kept her father busy when walking on their home's floors. Dr. King was assassinated in 1968, and Mrs. King died last year. Yolanda King would have been 51 years old at the time of death or 59 years old today. [82], 25 years after her father's assassination, she went to his gravesite. Her career as an actor and speaker combined her father's activism with her own artistic pursuits. I remember thinking she was sparkly a good, throaty laugh, good sense of humor, the ability to dramatically capture the room's attention. ", during a celebration that marked what would have been her father's sixty-fourth birthday. Bernice King, Yolanda King and Martin Luther King III. Klein said the family did not know the cause of death but that relatives think it might have been a heart problem. Members of the chapter are "deeply saddened to learn of the recent passing of Ms. Yolanda King,'' spokeswoman Tiffany Travis said today. Yolanda died in May. She became a secondary caregiver to her younger siblings. [58] Despite some early opposition to acting that she received during her controversial play in high school, King still tried to get roles and actively tried performing. Her mother tried to debunk this, insisting that they would still get it. She appeared in numerous films and played Rosa Parks in the 1978 miniseries King. 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. Even in her infancy, Yolanda was faced with the threats her father was given when they extended to his family. Search instead in Creative? Many in attendance did not know her, but came out of respect for the King family's history of peace protests and social justice. King died late Tuesday in Santa Monica, Calif., at age 51. Her educational accomplishments continued when she earned a Master of Fine Arts from New York University in 1979 (via Stanford). Yolanda King, who lived in California, was an actress, ran a production company and appeared in numerous films, including "Ghosts of Mississippi." She played Rosa Parks in the 1978 miniseries "King." Yolanda King was active in education during the start of her acting career, working as a professor for three years at Fordham University before moving to Los Angeles in 1990. In response, she pushed for "the goal" to be "color acceptance. Supervisor Kenneth Hahn said to King that he "sensed I was in the presence of a great man when I met your father. Al Sharpton called Yolanda King was a "torch bearer for her parents and a committed activist in her own right.". King was also an author and advocate for peace and nonviolence, and held memberships in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference which her father co-founded in 1957 and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Klein said the family did not know the cause of death but that relatives think it might have been a heart problem. She stated, "It is entirely appropriate that you would choose to focus on multiculturalism as the opening activity of Black History Month. She was a young girl during his famous stay in the Birmingham, Alabama, jail. She called for Americans to memorialize those who gave their lives for "the struggle for peace and justice. 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. [76] King and Shabazz had planned the play months before the voters of the state rejecting the holiday, and King prepared a statement which solidified her reasons for supporting the boycott. Yolanda Denise King, daughter and eldest child of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and a friend of the gay community, died on May 15. [33] Bill Cosby flew to Atlanta after the funeral and entertained King and her siblings. Being a busy woman, her brother merely treated it as one of her hectic schedules. Summary . 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. King; two brothers, Martin Luther King III and Dexter Scott King; and an extended family. She was 12 when her father was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., in 1968. "[73] At this point in her life, King also served as director of cultural affairs for the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change and was tasked with raising and directing funds for all artistic events.[74]. King; two brothers, Martin Luther King III and Dexter Scott King; and an extended family. Yolanda King's career proved equally successful as she used both entertainment and oratory to advance her family's message. [45], At 15 she was subject to controversy when she appeared in the play The Owl and the Pussycat with a white male lead. She reflected "I had never read his works. He may be dead physically, and one day I am going to see him again".[43]. 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? [25] Her memories of her father prompted her to state that he "believed we were all divine. 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). 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. Not long after, she collapsed in the Santa Monica . [50] King would ultimately attend Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts after graduating from high school. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who melded her father's. Thank you for her voice. King was also an author and advocate for peace and nonviolence, and held memberships in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference which her father co-founded in 1957 and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. "[72] In honor of her father, King promoted a show in Los Angeles entitled "Achieving the Dream" in 2001. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. The loss has not gotten easier in 50 years, but his three surviving children each bear it on their own terms. Yolanda King is survived by her sister, the Rev. [85] In October, she uttered her belief that her father's dream of integration was not fully understood. after numerous attempts to explain the issue to her, Yolanda finally understood. [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'. [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. Her career in acting kept her in the realm of civil rights. And I was happy to see that they bore no resemblance to the sad-eyed youngsters I'd seen on television during their father's services. "[127] Joseph Lowery stated; "She was a princess and she walked and carried herself like a princess. ATLANTA - Yolanda King, the Rev. 225 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 death came a year after her mother died. [116], Bernice King said it was "very difficult standing here blessed as her one and only sister. hide caption, Yolanda King, shown here in a 2005 photograph, sought to encourage "personal growth and positive social change.". [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. November 17, 1955 - May 15, 2007 Santa Monica, California | Age 51 Daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., dies . This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Her death comes little more than a year after the death of her mother, Coretta Scott King. What is the birth name of. King cried when she found out her father had been imprisoned. [35], In regards to the possibility that her father could have been saved, King said she doubted that her father could have lived much longer given all the stress he had during his tenure as a leader of the Civil Rights Movement. NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates offers a personal note on Yolanda King. [8] The Kings would have another daughter, almost eight years later, named Bernice (born 1963). Born on Nov. 17, 1955, in Montgomery, Ala., King was just an infant when her home was bombed during the turbulent civil rights era. I am in direct contact with her spirit, and that has given me so much peace and so much strength.". [22] King flew to Memphis, Tennessee with her brothers and mother and participated in leading a march in Memphis with sanitation workers and civil rights leaders. 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. Ms. King was meeting her brother Dexter King at a friends home when she collapsed and died. Prior to the film's release, King expressed belief in children of the time knowing that "Martin Luther King Jr. was killed, but when it is time to talk about the facts and the history, there is not a lot of knowledge. #inline-recirc-item--id-93e66a4a-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d ~ .item:nth-child(5) { In a statement, Representative John Lewis, Democrat of Georgia and a veteran of the civil rights movement, said that being Dr. Kings daughter was to carry an extra burden. [48] Despite statements such as these, King did not become aware of the public discomfort with her role until years later, citing her mother's involvement in her knowledge of the criticism.[49]. King's mother, Coretta Scott King, suffered a stroke before her death from cancer in 2006. "[88] She honored her father in 1995 by performing in the Chicago Sinfonietta in the play "A Lincoln Portrait", in which she was the narrator. Historian David Garrow, who won a Pulitzer for his biography of King and who remains friends with many King intimates, says it's not so surprising that none of the King children married. The event was planned by survivors of the . Bernice A. The King Center in Atlanta set up to preserve the legacy of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King says his oldest child, Yolanda Denise King, has died. } People Photos Purpose. 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 a reserved and quiet person who loved acting. [62] The two were young adults at the time and had a mutual friend who noticed they were both studying theater in New York and arranged for them to meet. [3] Yolanda and her mother were not harmed. Death photos of Yolanda King Seeing Spots May 24, 2007 1 2 Next Seeing Spots Joyful Woman! Marty was quieter, but he tossed in a quip or two when he could manage to get a word in edgewise. This, and other experiences, prompted a 7-year-old Yolanda to tell her friends (via Stanford), "Look, all I want is to just be treated like a normal child.". The next year, Ms. Kings uncle A. D. King, her fathers sole brother, accidentally drowned. She debunked complacency in having any role in progression of her father's dream. Martin Luther King Sr., refused to attend, but her mother supported her. I watched as the four King children grew into adulthood, then middle age, all single. [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. .component--type-recirculation .item:nth-child(5) { Martin Luther King III uttered that "Yolanda is still in business. Sometime after Martin Luther King's assassination, King told her mother "Mom, I'm not going to cry because my dad is not dead. There, in my living room, shaking off snow and laughing, were the kids in the picture two of them, anyway. From left: Dexter King, the Rev. 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. I was just someone who loved someone, and I knew he had done great things and now people didn't appreciate it." [79] King stressed in 1992 that love would help people make their mark on the world. She received a standing ovation afterwards, alongside a thunderous applause. 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. [83] During July 1993, she agreed to speak at the Coral Springs City Centre for airfare and a fee in January 1994. Al Sharpton , U.S.. Yolanda, from your one and only, I thank you for being a sister and for being a friend." She mentioned the possibility that the event could have been a calling for Americans to put their loyalty towards "their race, tribe and nation", as her father once said. Yolanda King was the founder and head of Higher Ground Productions, billed as a "gateway for inner peace, unity and global transformation." [130] During a 2009 reunion at her alma mater Smith College, a walk was done in her memory by fellow alumnae.[131]. [68], She celebrated her father's holiday on January 16, 1986, and attended a breakfast in Chicago with Mayor Harold Washington. Rest in peace Yoki! Before her death, she led a production company called Higher Ground Productions an organization whose mission is to provide a "gateway for inner peace, unity, and global transformation," as per NPR. She was 51 King. In 1958, Dr. King narrowly escaped death when he was stabbed in a bookstore in Harlem. display: none; [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]. Her childhood experience was greatly influenced by her father's highly public activism. Funeral arrangements would be announced later, the family said in a brief statement. "Hey, hope you don't mind, but I brought Yoki and Marty with me," he apologized as the three swept up the stairs of my DuPont Circle townhouse. It was the first time she had ever been arrested. Funeral arrangements would be announced later, the family said in a statement. 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. Father's death: 1968 Teenage years and high school: 1968-1972 Early adulthood College: 1972-1976 . As she said during an interview, "I prefer Yoki. 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. I am in direct contact with her spirit, and that has given me so much peace and so much strength.". [4] Despite this, the front porch was damaged and glass broke in the home. [61] Both were worried that they would not like each other due to their fathers' legacies. He had come up for the festivities, and he had two friends with him. The movement was in her DNA. Ms. King graduated from Smith College and earned a master of fine arts degree from New York University. Became a secondary caregiver to her, Yolanda was faced with the her. Home 's floors adulthood, then middle age, all single her death from cancer in 2006 insisting. 82 ], Bernice King said it was `` very difficult standing here blessed as her one only! 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