American civil rights activist and minister (1926–1990)
The Reverend
Ralph Abernathy
Abernathy in 1968
2nd President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
In office 1968–1977
Preceded by
Martin Luther King Jr.
Succeeded by
Joseph Lowery
Personal details
Born
David Abernathy
(1926-03-11)March 11, 1926 Linden, Alabama, U.S.
Died
April 17, 1990(1990-04-17) (aged 64) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Political party
Democratic
Spouse
Juanita Jones Abernathy
Children
5, including Ralph III and Donzaleigh
Occupation
Clergyman, activist
Known for
Civil rights movement
Peace movement
Closest friend and mentor of Martin Luther King Jr.
Military service
Branch/service
United States Army
Rank
Platoon sergeant
Battles/wars
World War II
Ralph David Abernathy Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was ordained in the Baptist tradition in 1948. As a leader of the civil rights movement, he was a close friend and mentor of Martin Luther King Jr. He collaborated with King and E. D. Nixon to create the Montgomery Improvement Association, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott and co-created and was an executive board member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He became president of the SCLC following the assassination of King in 1968; he led the Poor People's Campaign in Washington, D.C.,[1] as well as other marches and demonstrations for disenfranchised Americans. He also served as an advisory committee member of the Congress on Racial Equality (CORE).
In 1971, Abernathy addressed the United Nations speaking about world peace. He also assisted in brokering a deal between the FBI and American Indian Movement protestors during the Wounded Knee incident of 1973. He retired from his position as president of the SCLC in 1977 and became president emeritus. Later that year he unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives for the 5th district of Georgia. He later founded the Foundation for Economic Enterprises Development, and he testified before the U.S. Congress in support of extending the Voting Rights Act in 1982.
In 1989, Abernathy wrote And the Walls Came Tumbling Down, a controversial autobiography about his and King's involvement in the civil rights movement. Abernathy eventually became less active in politics and returned to his work as a minister. He died of heart disease on April 17, 1990. His tombstone is engraved with the words "I tried".[2]
^Lewis, Femi. "How Did Ralph Abernathy Work Alongside MLK During the Civil Rights Movement?". ThoughtCo. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
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Ralph David Abernathy Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was ordained in the Baptist...
moved to Atlanta, Georgia where she grew up. There, her father, Dr. Ralph David Abernathy, Sr. continued his work co-leading the Civil Rights Movement with...
the son of RalphAbernathy and Juanita Abernathy, the civil rights activists. He was named "III" after his older brother Ralph David Abernathy Jr. who died...
Between both the west and east sides of I-285, I-20 was named the Ralph David Abernathy Freeway in 1991 after the late civil rights activist. From I-285...
Tumbling Down is a 1989 autobiography written by civil rights leader RalphAbernathy. The book charts his life and work with his best friend Dr. Martin...
Juanita Odessa Jones Abernathy (December 1, 1931 – September 12, 2019) was an American civil rights activist, and the wife of RalphAbernathy. Juanita Odessa...
get arrested, for the benefit of publicity. On February 1, King and RalphAbernathy refused to cooperate with Chief Baker's traffic directions on the way...
Egypt and Syria RalphAbernathy (1927–1990), American civil rights leader, minister and a close associate of Martin Luther King, Jr. Ralph Abraham (mathematician)...
Steele, Fred Shuttlesworth of Birmingham, Joseph Lowery of Mobile, and RalphAbernathy of Montgomery, all played key roles in this meeting. The group continued...
community leaders in Montgomery, Alabama. Under the leadership of RalphAbernathy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Edgar Nixon, the MIA was instrumental in...
DuVernay's civil rights film Selma portraying activist and Baptist minister RalphAbernathy. In 2015, Domingo began appearing in a recurring role on AMC's post-apocalyptic...
of the American Civil Rights Movement, with Martin Luther King Jr., RalphAbernathy, and many other locals becoming prominent figures in the movement's...
would take place until his return. When he returned, he caucused with RalphAbernathy and Rev. E.N. French to name the association to lead the boycott to...
managing its 15-acre tent city – but he began to increasingly clash with RalphAbernathy, King's successor as chairman of the SCLC. In 1969 The New York Times...
mother named him after American civil rights activist RalphAbernathy and American writer Ralph Ellison. His maternal grandmother is an Ethiopian Jew...
strike down segregation policies in Montgomery; pastor and activist RalphAbernathy; and Robert Graetz, a minister who helped organize the Montgomery Bus...
supporters. To build morale and to recruit volunteers to go to jail, RalphAbernathy spoke at a mass meeting of Birmingham's black citizens at the 6th Avenue...
disobey the ruling. On April 12, King was arrested with SCLC activist RalphAbernathy, ACMHR and SCLC official Fred Shuttlesworth, and other marchers, while...
the original on 2017-05-18. Kirkland, W. Michael (April 27, 2004). "RalphAbernathy (1926–1990)". The New Georgia Encyclopedia. Athens, GA: Georgia Humanities...
later became a leader in the SCLC along with Martin Luther King Jr., RalphAbernathy, James Bevel, Joseph Lowery, and Andrew Young, among many others. He...
June and July 1964 was led by Robert Hayling, Martin Luther King Jr., RalphAbernathy, Andrew Young, Hosea Williams, C. T. Vivian and Fred Shuttlesworth...
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