An end to King's pro-gay legacy?

Will the civil rights movement still be inclusive of gays and lesbians now that it has lost its gay-friendliest voice? The passing of Coretta Scott King, wife of slain civil rights pioneer Martin Luther King Jr., on January 30 has prompted some gay rights leaders to publicly worry about the future of the movement.

On many occasions King affirmed her belief that fighting for gay rights was in keeping with her husband's legacy. She forged alliances with gay leaders and in March 2004 denounced a proposed federal constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage as an attack on gay families.

King was one of a very few prominent voices in the African-American civil rights movement to embrace lesbians and gays, and she faced fierce opposition even from within her family. King's youngest daughter, the Reverend Bernice King, made news last year when she participated in an antigay march in Atlanta with her mentor, Bishop Eddie Long, a megachurch pastor. In 1998, King's niece Alveda King trekked across the country speaking at rallies against gay rights legislation, calling her organization "King for America."

But Earl Ofari Hutchinson, a well-known black political commentator, isn't worried about a change in direction now that Coretta King is gone. "Bernice and Alveda don't have the political or social resonance, cachet, respect, admiration, or long and deep track record of commitment to the civil rights movement that got [Coretta] the platform that she had," he said. "She was able to be a friend and an ally to many movements, not just the gay civil rights movement. No one else in the King family has that power."