As we enter BHM and look back at the leaders of the civil rights movement in the Nat Geo series "Genius," here's a peek at the next generation of leaders.
Civil rights leader Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. delivers a speech to a crowd of approximately 7,000 people on May 17, 1967 at UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza in Berkeley, California.
A new National Geographic series uncovering the relationship between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X has hit our television screens. We’re diving deeper into the people behind the movement this Black History Month. And that includes looking at the future of the civil rights movement.
While there will never be another MLK, here are the people (some of whom are still in high school) who have taken up his mantle.
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Rev. William Barber II
Reverend William J Barber II speaks at the We Are the Moral Resurrection! Georgetown-to-Austin March for Democracy rally to support voting rights at the Texas State Capitol on July 31, 2021, in Austin, Texas. Photo: Getty Images SUZANNE CORDEIRO
Rev. William Barber II is an obvious example. The civil rights leader has taken up Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.’s work with the revitalized Poor People’s Campaign.
Thandiwe Abdullah
LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 20: (EDITOR’S NOTE: Image has been converted to black and white) Co-founder of Black Lives Matter Los Angeles Youth Vanguard Thandiwe Abdullah attends ‘Women’s March Los Angeles hosts March For Our Lives LA: Road to Change & the Parkland survivors & activists’ at St. Elmo’s Village on July 20, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Emma McIntyre
In 2015, Thandiwe Abdullah launched the Black Lives Matter Youth Vanguard — pushing the next generation to speak out on anti-Blackness and racism.
Bryan Stevenson
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JANUARY 16: Bryan Stevenson, Esq., Founder and Executive Director, Equal Justice Initiative, speaks onstage during the 2023 Martin Luther King, Jr. Beloved Community Commemorative Service at Ebenezer Baptist Church on January 16, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. The annual service is held in honor of the life of civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who would have turn 94 on January 15th. Photo: Getty Images Paras Griffin
Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative Bryan Stevenson has been a champion of civil rights throughout his career overturning over 140 wrongful convictions through his initiative.
Amanda Gorman
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 05: Amanda Gorman attends the Los Angeles Premiere of Sony Pictures’ “The Book of Clarence” at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on January 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
Amanda Gorman, 25, is a poet and activist who catapulted to fame for her speech during Joe Biden’s inauguration.
Stacey Abrams
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - AUGUST 10: Stacey Abrams speaks onstage during TIME Honoring The March: An Impact Family Dinner at The National Center for Civil and Human Rights on August 10, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo: Getty Images Paras Griffin
Stacey Abrams has fought tirelessly for voting rights in the deep south.
Kenidra Roshay Woods
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 01: (L-R) Blair Imani, Logan Browning, Naomi Wadler and Kenidra Woods attend Teen Vogue Summit 2018: #TurnUp - Day 1 at The New School on June 1, 2018 in New York City. Photo: Getty Images Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Teen Vogue
At just 13 years old, she protested in her hometown of St. Louis, Missouri after the killing of Michael Brown. She has continued her work as an activist, fighting for gun control, racial equity, and mental health.
Dorceta Taylor
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 15: Tanya Gayle and Dorceta E. Taylor attend the 2018 Audubon Women In Conservation Luncheon at The Plaza Hotel on May 15, 2018 in New York City. Photo: Getty Images Aurora Rose/Patrick McMullan
Dorceta Taylor has been leading the fight for environmental justice across the United States — an issue that disproportionatley impacts millions of Black Americans throughout the country.
Chelsea Miller
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 15: Activist Chelsea Miller backstage during the 17th Annual Apollo Uptown Hall: MLK - Blueprint For The Culture at The Apollo Theater on January 15, 2023 in New York City. Photo: Getty Images Shahar Azran
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JANUARY 09: Dr. Bernice A. King signs copies of the book “Coretta: The Autobiography of Mrs. Coretta Scott King” during the 2024 King Holiday Observance kickoff reception & book signing at The King Center on January 09, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo: Getty Images Paras Griffin
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 04: Isra Hirsi speaks onstage during the Teen Vogue Summit 2021 at Goya Studios on December 04, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Rachel Murray
Isra Hirisi is a young environmental justice activist, who co-founded the Youth Climate Strike. She was named in Fortune Magazine’s 40 under 40 in Government and Politics. She is also the daughter of Progressive Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN).
Yolanda Renee King
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 18: Yolanda Renee King, the granddaughter of Martin Luther King Jr., waits to preach at the Washington National Cathedral January 18, 2022 in Washington, DC. King spoke from the cathedral’s Canterbury Pulpit, the same pulpit Martin Luther King Jr. spoke from on his last Sunday sermon before his death. Photo: Getty Images Win McNamee
WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 28: Martin Luther King III speaks to members of the press as The Rev. Al Sharpton and other organizers of the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington listen after a meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House on August 28, 2023 in Washington, DC. The march commemorated the 60th anniversary of Dr, Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom where more than a quarter million people marched on the National Mall for civil rights. Photo: Getty Images Alex Wong
Martin Luther King III, a civil rights activist and father of Yolanda Renee King, has also been compared to his famous parents.
Zyahna Bryant
Charlottesville, VA - Aug. 3: Zyahna Bryant wrote a petition in March of 2016 asking the City of Charlottesville to take down a statue of Robert E. Lee from a city park during her freshman year at Charlottesville High School. She was photographed in the sancturary of Sojourners United Church of Christ, Friday August 3, 2018 Photo: Getty Images Norm Shafer/ For The Washington Post
At 15, Zyahna Bryant petitioned the city of Charlottesville to remove the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Now, in her early twenties, she’s continued to work as an activist.
Rashad Robinson
Rashad Robinson at the premiere of “The Color Purple” held at The Academy Museum on December 6, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Christopher Polk/Variety
As leader of Color of Change, Rashad Robinson has been a trailblazer in the civil rights space.
Waikinya Clanton
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 08: Waikinya Clanton attends the 13th Annual Root 100 Gala at The Apollo Theater on December 08, 2022 in New York City. Photo: Getty Images Arturo Holmes
Waikinya Clanton, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Mississippi office, has kept up the fight for civil rights in the deep south.
Mari Copeny
Activist Mari Copeny attends the 2022 Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, May 15, 2022. Photo: Getty Images Maria Alejandra CARDONA
You probably know Mari Copeny as Little Miss Flint. At just 8 years-old she wrote to then-President Barack Obama about the water crisis in Flint. She has continued her activism to this day.
