Biography
Early Life
Bernice A. King was born on March 28, 1963. Her parents are the Civil Rights Leaders Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. She is the youngest of four children. King faced a difficult childhood. She was five years old in 1968 when her father was assassinated. Her uncle drown the following year and in 1974 her grandmother was assassinated while playing the organ in church. King and her oldest brother followed in their father’s footsteps as ministers. She reflected, “I think that in a sense my calling to the ministry will be the perpetuation of the flame, the spirit of my father living on.”
King graduated from Douglass High School in 1981. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology in 1985 from Spelman College. King received both a Doctorate of Law and a Master of Divinity from Emory University in 1990. She remained deeply committed to preserving her family’s legacy even while pursuing her education.
Ministry
King delivered her trial sermon to become a minister in 1988 at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Her father, grandfather, and great-grandfather had served as ministers at Ebenezer. King was ordained in 1990 as the Assistant Pastor of Greater Rising Star Baptist Church in Atlanta. She was a bi-vocational minister. While she was serving in the church, King also served as a Law Clerk for Judge Glenda Hatchett, Chief Judge of the Fulton County Juvenile Detention Court. From 2003-2011 she served as an Elder at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia.
Activism
King is a charismatic speaker, author, and activist. Between 2009 and 2010, King made history as the first woman to serve as President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in 2009-2010. The SCLC was co-founded by her father. She led the “Let Freedom Ring” event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington and her father’s iconic “I Have a Dream” speech in 2013. The global event was attended by Presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter, along with members of Congress, international dignitaries, and entertainers. King received the Legend Award as part of the “Celebrating the Dream” initiative during that celebration. King was featured in Ebony magazine as one of their “Ten of Tomorrow.” This feature recognized her as a rising leader in the Black community.
King used her influence to inspire business leaders in Atlanta to take action on social and racial justice issues through the Leadership Atlanta Class of 2020. Her efforts helped to pass Georgia’s Hate Crime Legislation. She continues her impactful work as a licensed attorney and a prominent leader in numerous organizations throughout Georgia. She is a Certified Mediator and a member of the International Women’s Forum and the National Council of Negro Women. She also serves on the board of the Black National Bank Foundation.
King currently serves as the CEO of The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change. This is the organization her mother established as a living memorial to her father’s legacy. The King Center focuses on policy advocacy, research, and education. Her work teaching the principles and practices of nonviolent social change to people of all ages has reached over 500,000 people globally. From one of America’s most historic families emerged a compassionate preacher, a powerful advocate, and a pillar of the Atlanta community. Rev. Dr. Bernice A. King continues to enliven and expand the King family legacy.
