ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News has learned that the Rev. Ralph David Abernathy III, son of the Civil Rights icon and former state Senator, has died.
Channel 2 investigative reporter Mark Winne talked with Abernathy’s family Thursday and they said Abernathy died of natural causes.
Just one month ago, Abernathy spoke out publicly about his three-year battle with cancer that had spread to his liver.
He had kept the disease out of the public's eye until then.
Abernathy’s wife, Annette, says he was strong to the very end in that Christian faith that sustained him.
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said he was saddened to learn of Abernathy’s passing, and that the younger Abernathy carried on his father’s work.
“He was known for his saying: ‘If the elevator to success is broken, take the stairs,’” Reed said in a prepared statement. “His work ethic and his commitment to the ideals of his father meant he could not sit idly by when confronted with injustice, and he worked tirelessly throughout his career to protect children and strengthen families.”
I know firsthand Rev Ralph David Abernathy III found grace, a remarkable grace that flowed from him and blessed those around him @wsbtv
— Mark Winne (@MarkWinneWSB) March 17, 2016
Abernathy III died two days short of his 57th birthday. He had a tainted political career after he was convicted in 1998 on 35 felony charges related to false reimbursement requests to the Legislature. Abernathy, a Democrat, was prosecuted by Democratic Attorney General Thurbert Baker and served about a year of a four-year prison sentence.
He says he would not have the courage to face cancer-- if he had not gone to prison.
“I knew God but I didn’t have a personal relationship with him,” Abernathy said. “When I went to prison for $5,700 on a state senate expense account, it was a very spiritually awakening time for me. God visited me, and we had a one-on-one. I met Him for myself, and He truly lifted me above my circumstances and carried me straight through that valley.”
In the past year, he was trying to raise $3.5 million to build a “freedom plaza” outside the West Hunter Street Baptist Church, an iconic landmark from the Civil Rights era where his father was pastor.
"His work ethic and his commitment to the ideals of his father meant he could not sit idly by when confronted with injustice." - Mayor Kasim Reed
The church, which is owned by Abernathy, is in a state of disrepair.
Atlanta City Councilman C.T. Martin said Abernathy’s passing is a loss for everyone concerned about human rights. The councilman also said he was concerned about the future of the church and the plaza project.
“He was a long-time advocate for civil rights and human rights in our city,” Martin said. “He will be sadly missed.”
"I have known him ever since he was a child and watched him grow up to become a public servant, a leader and an advocate for the preservation of his father's legacy," said Rep. John Lewis. "Ralph loved his family and worked tirelessly in the effort to make the old West Hunter Street Baptist Church, formerly located on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue--the church his father pastored for many years--a historic site. He honored his father's accomplishments and contributions to the civil rights struggle and passionately strived to ensure that they would never be forgotten."
"He honored his father's accomplishments and contributions to the civil rights struggle," Rep. John Lewis
Abernathy’s father, Ralph David Abernathy Jr., was a leader of the Civil Rights movement and Martin Luther King’s closest friend. In 1957, the elder Abernathy co-founded, and was an executive board member of, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He died in 1990.
The family is asking for prayers at this time.
There is no word on funeral arrangements at this point.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution contributed to this article.
Cox Media Group
