King Center for Nonviolent Social Change
The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change is a nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization founded in 1968 by Coretta Scott King. King started the organization in the basement of the couple's home in the year following the 1968 assassination of her husband, Martin Luther King Jr.
In 1981, the center's headquarters were moved into the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, a multimillion-dollar facility on Auburn Avenue which includes King's birth home and the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where he preached from 1960 until his death.
In 1977, a memorial tomb was dedicated, and the remains of Martin Luther King Jr. were moved from South View Cemetery to the plaza that is nestled between the center and the church. Martin Luther King Jr.'s gravesite and a reflecting pool are also located next to Freedom Hall. Mrs. King was interred with her husband on February 7, 2006.
As of 2012, The King Center's current President and CEO is King's youngest child, Bernice King. Located in Atlanta, Georgia, the organization carries out initiatives on both the domestic and international level. The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change is dedicated to research, education and training in the principles, philosophy and methods of Kingian nonviolence.The Martin Luther King, Jr. Nonviolent Peace Prize is awarded by the King Center.
Previous recipients include Rosa Parks, Desmond Tutu, and Mikhail Gorbachev.
