Alveda King: Carrying on the King Family Legacy
As we prepare to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., host Yael Eckstein welcomes to the podcast Dr. Alveda King, daughter of slain civil rights activist Rev. A.D. King, and niece of Dr. King.
Throughout her life, Alveda has carried on the legacy of the King family, passing on the message of love for and dignity of each human being as a champion for life from “the womb to the tomb.”
Dr. King shares with Yael, “As I was brought up by my Daddy, my Granddaddy, and my Uncle ML, we must know that we are all one race, and we must work together for human dignity… anywhere and everywhere we are on this planet.”
You won’t want to miss this fascinating message that will inspire each of us to promote God’s goodness wherever we are. For more information on today’s episode, visit mybiblicalroots.org.
Episode Notes
Following the death of her uncle, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968, young Alveda King had a lot of hatred in her heart. Yet, even as her own father was mourning the death of his brother, he took Alveda into his arms and said, “You cannot hate white people. White people pray with us. White people go to jail with us. White people march with us, live with us and die with us. Skin color cannot determine what we are as human beings.” Along with her Uncle ML’s deeply embedded message of love, these words have formed the core of Dr. King’s work and passion for promoting the dignity of all people.
“My whole family knew that regardless of skin color, we are one race, and we must all work together for human dignity—whether we’re in Israel, in the United States, or anywhere on this planet,” Dr. King told podcast host Yael Eckstein, President and CEO of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. “As my uncle said, the human race must learn to come together as brothers and sisters and not perish together as fools.”
Dr. King has carried on this family legacy as a champion for the sanctity and dignity of all human life, “from the womb to the tomb,” through her ministry Speak for Life, and by serving as Chair of the Center for the American Dream by the America First Policy Institute. “As human dignity is elevated, and we begin to understand that there is a critical race—the one blood, human race—we will begin to see the hate and violence in our nation subside.”
During this “Conversation with Yael,” Dr. King talks about her work, about growing up amid such a fabled and famous family, and of her work as a member of the Georgia State House of Representatives during the early 1980s to secure passage of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a state holiday on its way to eventually being adopted as a national holiday and becoming the law of the land. “That was such an incredible experience for me,” Dr. King said. “I just say that with God all things are possible.”