Christine King Farris

 

 

 

Born:   September 11, 1927

Birthplace:   Atlanta, Georgia

Died:  June 29, 2023

Zodiac Sign:  Virgo

 

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Career and Life

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Willie Christine King Farriswas an American teacher and civil rights activist, the eldest sibling of Martin Luther King Jr. She taught at Spelman College and was the author of several books and was a public speaker on various topics, including the King family, multicultural education, and teaching.

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Like her mother and grandmother before her, King Farris attended Spelman College in Atlanta, where she earned a bachelor's degree in economics in 1948. She wanted to continue her studies at the University of Georgia but it did not admit Black students at the time. King Farris then attended Columbia University in New York and received a master's degree in social foundations of education in 1950. She earned a second master's degree in special education in 1958.

 

King Farris got her first professional job as a teacher at W.H. Crogman Elementary School in Atlanta in 1950. The school primarily served students from black low-income households. In 1958, she returned to her Alma Mater as director of the Freshman Reading Program at Spelman College. In time, she became professor of education and director of the Learning Resources Center there. When she retired in 2014, she had served Spelman for 56 years.

 

King Farris was, for many years, vice chair and treasurer of the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change and was active for several years in the International Reading Association, and various church and civic organizations, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Farris also published a children's book, My Brother Martin, as well as her autobiography, Through It All: Reflections on My Life, My Family, and My Faith, in 2009.

 

King Farris's death was announced by her family attorney, Antavius Weems. Farris died in Atlanta on June 29, 2023, at the age of 95.  Source.

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