10 Facts About MLK’s Right-Wing Niece Alveda King

Civil Rights Leader’s Niece Is a Staunch Conservative

Prominent blacks such as Cornel West and Tavis Smiley criticized Barack Obama’s decision to be sworn in for his second inauguration using the bible of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. because they don’t feel the president has the same vision that King had. But the late civil rights leader’s niece Alveda King has different reasons for raising concerns about Obama’s use of her uncle’s bible.

A staunch conservative, Alveda King takes issue with the president’s stance on gay rights and reproductive rights.

“I really hope that when the president — and those who handle the Bible — I hope they just, even if they just accidentally slip it open, to where it says ‘choose life,’ or ‘God hates the shedding of innocent blood’ or something like that, I’m hoping it will just reverberate, shake them up a little bit,” King told the Newsmax website.

It’s not the first time Alveda King has made headlines. Here, an overview of her life:

Born in 1951, King is the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr.’s younger brother A.D. King. Like his brother, A.D. King was a minister and civil rights activist. He died in a drowning accident in the family swimming pool in 1969.

Alveda King says that she believes her father’s drowning was no accident. She says her father had previously been threatened (their house was fire bombed) and that he was a good swimmer, so she suspects foul play.

King says she had multiple abortions as a young woman. She now believes abortion should be illegal. She opposes gay rights as well and wrote in a 1994 letter that Coretta Scott King would be cursed for supporting both causes.

From 1979 to 1981, King served in the 28th district of the Georgia House of Representatives. As a politician, King was a Democrat.

In the 1980s, King, also a writer, accused Eddie Murphy of stealing her ideas for his film “Coming to America.” She said, “I gave the manuscript to be read by Eddie Murphy, and he decided to take that and cut me out,” she said. King ultimately lost the suit.

King serves as pastoral associate and director of African American outreach for Priests for Life and Gospel of Life Ministries. She’s also co-founder of an organization called King for America.

In 2010, King joined forces with Glenn Beck and appeared at this “Restoring Honor” rally in Washington, D.C.

Although King is known for promoting conservative and family values, she has been married and divorced three times.

King has faced criticism for referring to herself as “Dr. Alveda King,” given that she’s only the recipient of an honorary doctorate.

King has authored a self-help book for black women called "I Don’t Want Your Man, I Want My Own" and another book called "Sons of Thunder: The King Family Legacy."

 [ALSO READ: Why Conservatives Would’ve Attacked King]

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