Memphis civil rights advocate Clara Ester dies at 78
Civil rights icon and veteran church leader Clara Ester addresses a pivotal briefing for female delegates ahead of historic policy votes reshaping the denomination during the 2024 United Methodist General Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina on Ap
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Renowned civil rights activist Clara Ester, who rushed to the side of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. after he was shot, has died.
What we know:
Ester died on July 9 at the age of 78 after dedicating her life to social justice and faith-driven community leadership. She grew up attending mass meetings and picketed daily during the historic sanitation workers' strike in her hometown.
The backstory:
On April 4, 1968, the young college student was at the Lorraine Motel for dinner when she saw King chatting on the balcony. After hearing a gunfire blast, she ran to King, tried to loosen his belt and asked for towels to help stop the bleeding.
Ester later moved to Mobile, Alabama, and spent decades serving as a neighborhood organizer and executive director at the Dumas Wesley Community Center.
What we don't know:
Officials have not yet confirmed the exact medical cause of death for the longtime activist. It remains unknown if any other surviving eyewitnesses to the immediate aftermath of the shooting are still alive beside former U.N. ambassador Andrew Young.
What's next:
Funeral services are scheduled for Monday at Centenary United Methodist Church, located at 584 E. McLemore Avenue in Memphis.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from the Associated Press, who interviewed Ester and documented her historical accounts through reporters Travis Loller, Kristin M. Hall and Adrian Sainz, as well as press releases from United Methodist News and the National Civil Rights Museum.