Dexter Scott King was born in Atlanta on January 30, 1961 and named after the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama.
Dexter Scott King, famous civil rights activist and youngest son of Martin Luther King Jr, died Monday of prostate cancer in Malibu, California, the King Center said.
His wife said he died at home, peacefully, adding that he “gave everything and fought this terrible disease until the end.”
“As with all the challenges in his life, he faced this obstacle with courage and strength,” he said.
Dexter Scott King was born in Atlanta on January 30, 1961, and was named for Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, where his father served his first pastorate.
He was only seven years old when his father Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1968.
The Rev. Dr. Bernice A. King, executive director of the King Center, in a statement: “Words cannot express the anguish I feel at losing another brother. I pray for strength to get through this very difficult time.”
Following his father's legacy, Dexter attended Morehouse College in Atlanta. At the time of his death, he was serving as president of the King Center and president of the King Estate.
The 62-year-old also played his father in the 2002 TV movie. “The story of Rosa Parks”.
The founder and president of the civil rights organization National Action Network, the Rev. Al Sharpton, said he was “heartbroken” to learn of King's death.
“Dexter was only seven years old when his hero, his role model and, most importantly, his father were taken from us,” he said in a statement.
“However, she turned that pain into activism and dedicated her life to advancing the dream that Martin and Coretta Scott King had for their children, their grandchildren and all generations to come,” he added.
He was preceded in death by his father and mother, who died in 2006, and his sister Yolanda, who died in 2007. He is survived by his wife of 11 years Leah Weber King, his sister Bernice King, his brother Martin Luther King III. , his niece, Yolanda Renee King, and other family members.
