A woman of greatness

Many despair at all the evil and unrest and disorder in the world today, but I see a new social order and I see the dawn of a new day.
- Coretta Scott King, 1969

I think on many points she educated me," King once said of the woman who accompanied him on the whirlwind journey from an Alabama ministry to the center of a global civil rights movement, and who, after his death, would carry on his work through a variety of educational, political and philanthropic activities.

The widow of Nobel laureate was force for social justice

The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members, a heart of grace and a soul generated by love. - Coretta Scott King

King became a symbol, in her own right, of her husband's struggle for peace and brotherhood, presiding with a quiet, steady, stoic presence over seminars and conferences on global issues. "She was truly the first lady of the human rights movement," the Rev. Al Sharpton said in a statement. "The only thing worse than losing her is if we never had her."

King also wrote a book, "My Life With Martin Luther King Jr.," and, in 1969 founded the multimillion-dollar Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change. She saw to it that the center became deeply involved with the issues she said breed violence - hunger, unemployment, voting rights and racism.

"The center enables us to go out and struggle against the evils in our society," she often said. She became increasingly outspoken against businesses such as film and television companies, video arcades, gun manufacturers and toy makers she accused of promoting violence. She called for regulation of their advertising. http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org

I was thinking about some of the great women of the last century and Mrs. King was one of the best. She spent her life working in the areas of peace and social justice and as much as I admire her late husband, I think I admire her even more. She picked up the torch and carried it farther and longer then a lot of the activists from the same time period. She is a great role model for all people and especially for women around the world.