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King’s Daughter In Running to Become SCLC Prez By BET.com Staff
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the civil rights group co-founded by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. could name the daughter of the slain civil rights leader as its next president.
The Rev. Bernice King is one of two people who remain in contention for the SCLC post.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the SCLC now has only two of the initial five people who remain in contention for the top spot: the Rev. Bernice King and Arkansas Court of Appeals Judge Wendell Griffen. On Oct. 29, the group will hold its election to determine who gets the nod to replace Charles Steele, who was in the post for five years. Most recently, the Rev. Byron Clay served as the interim president.
Martin Luther King Jr. served as the SCLC's first president from 1957 until 1968, when he was assassinated. His son, Martin Luther King III, served as president from 1997 to 2004. <span style="font-weight: bold">If Bernice, 46, is chosen, she would be the first woman to head the group.</span> The Rev. Joseph Lowery, who served from 1977 to 1997, was the SCLC’s longest-serving leader. An internationally known motivational speaker and author, Bernice King is a minister at New Birth Missionary Church in Lithonia, Ga.
Griffen, 57, was the first African-American attorney to work for a major Arkansas law firm. He is an ordained minister and former pastor who serves as coordinator of ministries at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Little Rock.
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the civil rights group co-founded by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. could name the daughter of the slain civil rights leader as its next president.
The Rev. Bernice King is one of two people who remain in contention for the SCLC post.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the SCLC now has only two of the initial five people who remain in contention for the top spot: the Rev. Bernice King and Arkansas Court of Appeals Judge Wendell Griffen. On Oct. 29, the group will hold its election to determine who gets the nod to replace Charles Steele, who was in the post for five years. Most recently, the Rev. Byron Clay served as the interim president.
Martin Luther King Jr. served as the SCLC's first president from 1957 until 1968, when he was assassinated. His son, Martin Luther King III, served as president from 1997 to 2004. <span style="font-weight: bold">If Bernice, 46, is chosen, she would be the first woman to head the group.</span> The Rev. Joseph Lowery, who served from 1977 to 1997, was the SCLC’s longest-serving leader. An internationally known motivational speaker and author, Bernice King is a minister at New Birth Missionary Church in Lithonia, Ga.
Griffen, 57, was the first African-American attorney to work for a major Arkansas law firm. He is an ordained minister and former pastor who serves as coordinator of ministries at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Little Rock.