Documenting the American South Logo oral histories of the
American South  Family relationship to Martin Luther King Jr.
Josephine Clement describes the relationship of her family to
that of Martin Luther King Jr. while she was growing up in
Atlanta, Georgia. Clement explains how her sister and King were
close childhood friends and how her father had predicted King
would become a persuasive preacher. The family friendship
continued into later years and she describes how King spoke at
her father's funeral later on.  Citing this Excerpt   Full Text
of the Excerpt  I can remember my grandmother talking about
Reverend A. D. Williams, who was the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist
Church, and the father of Alberta Williams, who married Martin
Luther King, Senior. I knew her - Miss Alberta, we used to call
her - she was a woman of great gentility and culture,
refinement. Not particularly attractive, but well-educated,
well-versed. King, on the other hand, was nice-looking, but a
diamond in the rough. He came up from some l