ATLANTA (AP) — Dexter Scott King, the younger son of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, has died after battling prostate cancer.
The King Center in Atlanta says the 62-year-old son of the civil rights leader died Monday at his California home after battling prostate cancer.
Dexter King was named for the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Alabama where his father once served as pastor, and he was just 7 years old when his father was assassinated in 1968.
As an adult, Dexter King focused on shepherding his father’s legacy and protecting the King family’s intellectual property. Dexter King was serving as the King Center’s chairman at the time of his death.
Get more on him here:
10 places that shaped Martin Luther King Jr.'s march in history
Ghana
The civil rights struggles in the United States and the end of colonialism in Africa came at the same time and naturally the movements dovetailed.
In 1957, the Kings went to Ghana in West Africa to attend its independence ceremony from Britain, according to the King Encyclopedia at Stanford University. In the capital of Accra, he met then-Vice President Richard Nixon, among others.
His first overseas trip, Ghana a profound effect on King. Upon his return to the United States, he said, "Ghana has something to say to us. It says to us first, that the oppressor never voluntarily gives freedom to the oppressed. You have to work for it."
Before the pandemic, Ghana was emerging as a prime tourist destination not just in West Africa but the entire continent. It is open to US visitors. While many people come for the beaches, wildlife and food, it also holds important historical sites.
That includes Cape Coast Castle, which was a hub of the transatlantic slave trade. A visit there is a somber reminder of centuries of oppression and its ramifications during MLK's time up to today. Victoria Road, Cape Coast, Ghana, +233 024 587 3117
Online
If you're simply not able to make it to any of these places in person this year, trace the journeys of King online at Stanford University's extensive King Institute. It's a deep dive into his life, yet easy to navigate.
