Posts Tagged As: Bernice King

Bernice King’s Evolution

Jim Burroway

January 16th, 2012

Bernice King, the daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., has had a difficult relationship with the gay community. In 2004, she led a march with disgraced Atlanta anti-gay preacher Eddie Long to support a constitutional amendment banning marriage equality in Georgia. Before an audience of conservative Christians in 2004, she denounced equality for gay people, saying “I know deep down in my sanctified soul that he (Dr. King) did not take a bullet for same-sex marriage.” This position contrasted sharply with those of Coretta Scott King, Bernice’s mother and Dr. King’s wife, who appealed to “everyone who believes in Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream, to make room at the table of brotherhood and sisterhood for lesbian and gay people.”

Today, it looks like Bernice King has enjoyed something of an epiphany. Speaking at Atlanta’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr., rally, she addressed the LGBT community in her remarks. According to the GA Voice:

In a passionate, sermon-like speech about building unity, King said she didn’t care if people were Hindu, Buddhist, Islamist, were from the North side or the South side, were black or white, were “heterosexual or homosexual, or gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender” — that all people were needed to create unity.

LGBT advocates in the crowd were surprised and delighted by the inclusion. Witnesses agree that she began by talking about the need to unite all people, “heterosexual or homosexual,” before backing up to replace the word “homosexual” with “gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender.”

Paulina Helm-Hernandez, LGBT honorary grand marshal for the march and rally, said, “I thought it was great. First time I’ve ever heard her say lesbian, gay, bi and trans out loud. She said homosexual at first and then corrected herself. It takes a lot of grace to do something like that when you’re on a roll.”

    

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