85 Facts About Bernice King

Bernice Albertine King was born on March 28,1963 and is an American lawyer, minister, and the youngest child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr.

Bernice King was five years old when her father was assassinated.

Bernice King was 17 when she was invited to speak at the United Nations.

Bernice King's mother had a stroke in 2005 and, after she died the following year, King delivered the eulogy at her funeral.

Bernice King supported the presidential campaign of Barack Obama in 2008 and called his nomination part of her father's dream.

Bernice King was known for her advocacy against gay rights, in contrast to the rest of her outspokenly pro-LGBT family, through the 2000s and early 2010s.

Bernice King later seemed to retract these views in 2015.

Bernice King was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 2009.

Bernice King was the first woman elected to the presidency in the organization's history, amidst the SCLC holding two separate conventions.

Bernice King became upset with the actions of the SCLC, amid feeling that the organization was ignoring her suggestions and declined the presidency in January 2010.

Bernice King became CEO of the Bernice King Center only months afterward.

Bernice King's primary focus as CEO of The Bernice King Center and in life is to ensure that her father's nonviolent philosophy and methodology is integrated in various sectors of society, including education, government, business, media, arts and entertainment and sports.

Bernice King believes that Nonviolence 365 is the answer to society's problems and promotes it being embraced as a way of life.

Bernice Albertine King was born on March 28,1963, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Bernice King drove them home himself but, in what was all too typical with the work he was doing, had to leave them again within hours.

Bernice King's father died a week after Bernice's fifth birthday.

Bernice King said she has only two strong memories of her father, one of him at home with their family and the other of him lying in the casket at his funeral.

Family friends recall that she spent considerable time with Bernice King, who feels that being raised by a single parent has given her special insight into single-parent homes.

King's uncle, Alfred Daniel Williams King, drowned in a swimming pool when Bernice was six on July 21,1969.

Bernice King has said that the death of her grandmother and uncle caused her to have anger issues since she was 16 years old.

Bernice King was with her church youth group in Georgia mountains.

Bernice King aspired to become the first female President of the United States at the time of seeing the documentary.

Bernice King's brother Dexter Scott King attended the school as well and graduated when she was a sophomore.

Bernice King attended Grinnell College in Iowa, and graduated from Spelman College, a historically black college in Atlanta, with a degree in psychology in 1985.

Bernice King was arrested with her mother Coretta and her brother Martin Luther Bernice King III on June 26,1985, with the offense of demonstrating in front of an embassy.

On January 15,1987, what would have been her father's 58th birthday, Bernice King spoke in Chicago and told denizens to stay away from drugs.

At the age of 24, Bernice King decided to become a minister, and she earned a Master's degree in Divinity and a juris doctor from Emory University in 1990.

On May 14,1990, Bernice King became the second woman to be ordained at Ebenezer Baptist Church.

Bernice King spoke during his visit of the problems of racism, poverty and violence remained in America since her father was alive, but did not directly align with any of the issues with President Bush.

In January 1994, Bernice King voiced her opposition to New Hampshire's refusal to recognize Martin Luther Bernice King, Jr.

In 1996, Bernice King published a collection of her sermons and speeches called Hard Questions, Heart Answers.

Bernice King was an elder at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, but resigned in May 2011.

Bernice King joined the church in 2002 and came to regard Bishop Eddie Long as her mentor and spiritual father.

Bernice King has said her decision to leave was because of her desire to continue the legacy of her parents, which had grown stronger since the death of her mother.

Bernice King said her mother heard Obama's speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention and contacted her the following day over the senator's address, expressing her belief in Obama's political future.

In June 2006, Bernice King told a teenage audience that she intended to do more to carry on the legacy of nonviolence espoused by her parents during the 20th annual 100 Black Men of America conference in Atlanta.

On June 24,2014, Bernice King's parents were posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.

Bernice King stated in a statement released after the award was announced that the King family was "deeply honored" by her parents "being given this award in recognition of their tireless and sacrificial leadership to advance freedom and justice through nonviolence in our nation".

Bernice King was the keynote speaker at the Atlantic City Rescue Mission 50th anniversary gala, held on August 14,2014.

In May 1988, Bernice King was among the students of Emory charging that the college should hire more African-Americans as teachers and teach the works of African-American theologians in its courses.

Bernice King is a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, as was her mother.

On March 27,1988, nearly 20 years after her father's assassination, Bernice King delivered her first sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church.

Young said that Bernice King becoming a minister "almost makes you believe preaching is hereditary," after her service.

Bernice King's mother said at the time that she was satisfied with her daughter's decision to become a minister and stated that they had become closer than ever in the months leading up to the sermon.

Bernice King's sermon was delivered the day before her twenty-fifth birthday.

Dexter King articulated his distress over Bernice's conservative religious views as departing from their father's legacy.

In January 2012, Bernice King was named CEO of the Bernice King Center.

On May 19,2012, Bernice King met with Aissata Issoufou Mahamadou, First Lady of Niger and wife of Mahamadou Issoufou.

Mahamadou's visit to the Bernice King Center was a priority during her trip to the United States, having been an ardent admirer of Bernice King's father and mother.

Bernice King called on demonstrators to channel their responses into constructive nonviolent action, and mentioned witnesses giving conflicting accounts of the shooting.

Bernice King was the keynote speaker at the Seminole County Prayer Breakfast in February 1998.

On July 7,2009, Bernice King spoke alongside her brother Martin at the Staples Center in Los Angeles at a ceremony commemorating the life of Michael Jackson.

On October 16,2011, Bernice King mentioned at the Martin Luther Bernice King, Jr.

On January 13,2012, Bernice King was the keynote speaker at the 24th Annual Dr Martin Luther Bernice King Jr.

On March 29,2012, a month after the shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin, Bernice King released a statement through the Bernice King Center.

Bernice King made a public statement with regard to the State of Florida v George Zimmerman verdict on July 15,2013, via a CNN appearance with Wolf Blitzer.

Bernice King clarified a tweet she had posted on Twitter, and explained that the handling of the verdict would "determine how much progress we've made".

Bernice King spoke at a town hall meeting dedicated to Trayvon Martin and has admitted to having been "heartbroken" by the verdict.

Bernice King said Trayvon Martin's death and Zimmerman's acquittal were a wake-up call for Americans.

Bernice King addressed the death of Nelson Mandela on December 5,2013.

On March 19,2014, Bernice King gave a speech at Seminole State College of Florida as part of the school's Speaker Series.

Bernice King was joined by members of the King Center staff, who aided her in urging the community to not act out with violence.

On December 11,2004, Bernice King participated in a march against same-sex marriage in Atlanta.

Bernice King attended the funeral and delivered remarks on behalf of her mother.

Bernice King delivered the eulogy at her sister's memorial on May 24,2007.

Bernice King's election was won by a 23-to-15 vote, allowing her to defeat Arkansas judge, Wendell Griffen.

Bernice King said that she had made suggestions to the SCLC about how the presidency might operate in October 2010, but was not contacted formally until January, three months later.

Bernice King stated that she felt "disrespect" by the three months in between her suggestions to the organization and their response.

Bernice King reasoned this because Bernice did not reveal the contents of the safe deposit box.

The next day, Dexter Scott King's lawyers contended that Bernice was legally compelled to turn the letters over to Dexter, but ignored the order.

Harry Belafonte filed a lawsuit in October 2013, where he asked to be declared the owner of three documents given to him by the Kings and for their daughter Bernice King to be barred permanently from trying to claim ownership.

The King estate and Bernice King disputed Belafonte's ownership of the documents when in 2008, he took the items to Sotheby's auction house in New York to be appraised and put up for sale.

Bernice King's brothers filed a lawsuit against her, complaining that she had "secreted and sequestered" the two items of interest in violation of a 1995 agreement that gives the brothers sole control of all of their father's property.

Martin Luther Bernice King III was reported to have sent her, on January 20,2014, the year's Martin Luther Bernice King, Jr.

On February 4,2014, Bernice King stated that she would protest the sale of her father's Bible and Nobel Peace Prize and as a result, oppose her brothers.

Bernice King said that she would never support her brothers in selling the Nobel Peace Prize and Bible.

On March 14,2014, Ron Gaither, one of Bernice King's lawyers, argued that William Hill, lawyer of Martin Luther King III and Dexter King, should not have any role in the case because of his involvement in the 2008 dispute between the King children.

Hill's defense of himself was that he only had access to documents related to Coretta Scott King's estate and that Bernice King's lawyers were using a stalling tactic by trying to disqualify him.

On December 14,2007, at the State Bar of Georgia Headquarters, Bernice King was honored by the Georgia Alliance of African American Attorneys with the "Commitment to Community" award for her work as an attorney and community leader.

On October 7,2009, Bernice King received an award for her "lifetime of service to women and other causes" at the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Convention.

On November 7,2013, as part of the "Celebrating the Dream", in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the I Have a Dream speech done by her father, Bernice King received the Legend Award as a tribute to his legacy and after she delivered a speech.

Bernice King once said to LGBT supporters that her father did not take a bullet for same-sex marriage.

Bernice King has publicly stated that her father would have been against gay marriage.

Bernice King's statement was in contradiction of her mother, Coretta Scott King, who was an avid supporter of the LGBT community and publicly stated her husband would have been.

However, by 2015, it appeared she had changed her stance on the matter, as she issued a press release as CEO of the King Center supporting the United States Supreme Court's ruling on Obergefell v Hodges legalizing gay marriage.