Bernice King Declines SCLC Presidency

Fifteen months after her election, Bernice King, the youngest child of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has declined the position of president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

She said in a written statement Friday that her decision came “after numerous attempts to connect with the official board leaders on how to move forward under my leadership, unfortunately, our visions did not align.”

The board, meeting in Atlanta at the time King released her statement Friday morning, was not aware of her plans, according to one member, Art Rocker.

King initially delayed taking office because of turmoil of competing factions, both claiming to be the official board. One group tried to remove another from positions of power because then-Chairman Raleigh Trammell and then-Treasurer Spiver Gordon were suspected of mishandling $569,000 of SCLC funds, first reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The FBI and the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office opened investigations into the matter, and it is still pending. A grand jury in Ohio has indicted Trammell in connection with his spending of that chapter’s money.

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aricle courtesy of AJC.com