Mel King
Encyclopedia
Melvin H. King is an American
educator, activist, and writer.
King has been active across the landscape of neighborhoods and politics of Boston
for over fifty-five years, while also being an educator, youth worker, social activist, community organizer and developer, elected politician, author, and an Adjunct Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT). He is responsible for creating community programs and institutions for low-income people in Boston. He is the founder and current director of the South End Technology Center.
King and his wife, Joyce, married in 1951, are parents of six children, ranging in ages from 38 to 53.
, and his father, Watts King, in Barbados
. They met and married in Nova Scotia
and immigrated to Boston in the early 1920s. King, born in 1928, in Boston's South End neighborhood, was one of eight children born to the Kings between 1918 and 1938. He graduated from Boston Technical High School in 1946 and from Claflin College in Orangeburg, South Carolina in 1950 with a B.S. degree in mathematics. In 1951, he received his M.A. degree in education from Boston State College
and then taught math, first at Boston Trade High School and at his alma mater, Boston Technical High School.
In 1953, King left the classroom to work with at risk youth, becoming Director of Boy's Work at Lincoln House, a settlement house in Boston's South End community. He continued his community work focusing on street corner gangs as Youth Director at United South End Settlements (USES). He also worked as a community activist and urban renewal and anti-poverty organizer. He was let go by USES when he promoted and supported neighborhood control versus USES and government control over the urban renewal and federal funds to assist poor people. King was then rehired after huge protests from the community over his firing and was given the job as a community organizer. King, then founded the Community Assembly for a United South End (C.A.U.S.E.), to give tenants and community residents a voice in their communities. He continues to be active in and around Boston.
In 1968 Mel King, already a veteran in the struggle to stop the Boston Redevelopment Authority
(BRA) policy of demolition without relocation,
helped organize a sit-in at the BRA office on Thursday, April 25. When Mel King and other community activists learned that a parking garage was going to be built at the corner of Dartmouth and Columbus Streets in the South End, a site where housing had only recently been leveled to create a parking lot, they decided it was time for an attention-grabbing protest. The next morning, a rainy Friday, Mel King and a group of activists arrived early at the parking lot. By 7 am, King told them, "This is a place for people."
Despite police retaliation, for the next 3 days between 100 and 400 people lived on the lot. They built tents and wooden shanties and put up a large sign welcoming the media and visitors to "Tent City." Thousands of people came. The music of guitars, bongo drums, and saxophones filled the South End. Some of the "residents" set up hibachis and grilled burgers. Others put up strings of lights. Celtic's legend Bill Russell
, who owned a South End restaurant, provided food for the protestors. The event was peaceful and festive; the story received extensive coverage in the local media.
In honor of the demonstration, when the housing complex was dedicated on April 30, 1988, it was named "Tent City." Mel King told reporters that the key to the project was convincing ordinary Bostonians that they had to play a role in the development of their neighborhood.
King ran three times for a seat on the Boston School Committee in 1961, 1963 and 1965 – being unsuccessful each time. However, his citywide political organizing for these campaigns paid off. In 1973, he was elected as a State Representative for the 9th Suffolk District and served in the Massachusetts Legislature until 1982.
During the 2000 presidential election
King endorsed the presidential campaign of Ralph Nader
In 2003, King created The New Majority – an organization and program uniting Boston's communities of color – Blacks, Hispanics, Asians and Native Americans – uniting them around candidates for elective office.
King endorsed at-large city-councilor Sam Yoon
for Mayor on August 10, 2009. King praised Yoon's vision, his collaborative approach and his focus on improving the educational system in Boston.
radical to serious contender for Mayor of Boston. Despite Boston's historical scars of racism, Mel King's grassroots activism culminated
in political momentum that nearly defeated the favorite, Raymond Flynn
. Aside from securing the African American vote, King would have needed 30% of the white vote, which was almost accomplished. Flynn, an Irish-Catholic with roots in the gritty "Southie"(South Boston) area, would take the
election despite a landmark showing by King. Even with the defeat, the election and national attention was a historical turning point in the participation of African Americans in politics and urban policy.
In 1981, King's book, Chain of Change: Struggles for Black Community Developmenthttp://www.southendpress.org/2004/items/Chain was published by South End Press
. It focused on development in housing, education, employment and politics in Boston from the 1950s through the 1970s.
Upon his retirement from MIT, King established the South End Technology Center to provide computer training for low-income people.
In addition to writing Chain of Change and journal articles, King has used poetry to share his messages.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
educator, activist, and writer.
King has been active across the landscape of neighborhoods and politics of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
for over fifty-five years, while also being an educator, youth worker, social activist, community organizer and developer, elected politician, author, and an Adjunct Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
(MIT). He is responsible for creating community programs and institutions for low-income people in Boston. He is the founder and current director of the South End Technology Center.
King and his wife, Joyce, married in 1951, are parents of six children, ranging in ages from 38 to 53.
Early years
King's mother, Ursula, was born in GuyanaGuyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
, and his father, Watts King, in Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
. They met and married in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
and immigrated to Boston in the early 1920s. King, born in 1928, in Boston's South End neighborhood, was one of eight children born to the Kings between 1918 and 1938. He graduated from Boston Technical High School in 1946 and from Claflin College in Orangeburg, South Carolina in 1950 with a B.S. degree in mathematics. In 1951, he received his M.A. degree in education from Boston State College
Boston State College
Boston State College was a public university located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States.It was located in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston. Boston State College's roots begin with the Girls High School, founded in 1852. In 1872, the Boston Normal School separated from Girls High School and...
and then taught math, first at Boston Trade High School and at his alma mater, Boston Technical High School.
In 1953, King left the classroom to work with at risk youth, becoming Director of Boy's Work at Lincoln House, a settlement house in Boston's South End community. He continued his community work focusing on street corner gangs as Youth Director at United South End Settlements (USES). He also worked as a community activist and urban renewal and anti-poverty organizer. He was let go by USES when he promoted and supported neighborhood control versus USES and government control over the urban renewal and federal funds to assist poor people. King was then rehired after huge protests from the community over his firing and was given the job as a community organizer. King, then founded the Community Assembly for a United South End (C.A.U.S.E.), to give tenants and community residents a voice in their communities. He continues to be active in and around Boston.
Political activism
In 1967, King became the director of the New Urban League of Greater Boston. He brought job training for the unemployed and organized the community around public school, employment, and human services delivery issues.In 1968 Mel King, already a veteran in the struggle to stop the Boston Redevelopment Authority
Boston Redevelopment Authority
The Boston Redevelopment Authority is the municipal planning and development agency for Boston, working on both housing and commercial developments.The BRA was established by the Boston city council and the Massachusetts legislature in 1957...
(BRA) policy of demolition without relocation,
helped organize a sit-in at the BRA office on Thursday, April 25. When Mel King and other community activists learned that a parking garage was going to be built at the corner of Dartmouth and Columbus Streets in the South End, a site where housing had only recently been leveled to create a parking lot, they decided it was time for an attention-grabbing protest. The next morning, a rainy Friday, Mel King and a group of activists arrived early at the parking lot. By 7 am, King told them, "This is a place for people."
Despite police retaliation, for the next 3 days between 100 and 400 people lived on the lot. They built tents and wooden shanties and put up a large sign welcoming the media and visitors to "Tent City." Thousands of people came. The music of guitars, bongo drums, and saxophones filled the South End. Some of the "residents" set up hibachis and grilled burgers. Others put up strings of lights. Celtic's legend Bill Russell
Bill Russell
William Felton "Bill" Russell is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association...
, who owned a South End restaurant, provided food for the protestors. The event was peaceful and festive; the story received extensive coverage in the local media.
In honor of the demonstration, when the housing complex was dedicated on April 30, 1988, it was named "Tent City." Mel King told reporters that the key to the project was convincing ordinary Bostonians that they had to play a role in the development of their neighborhood.
King ran three times for a seat on the Boston School Committee in 1961, 1963 and 1965 – being unsuccessful each time. However, his citywide political organizing for these campaigns paid off. In 1973, he was elected as a State Representative for the 9th Suffolk District and served in the Massachusetts Legislature until 1982.
During the 2000 presidential election
United States presidential election, 2000
The United States presidential election of 2000 was a contest between Republican candidate George W. Bush, then-governor of Texas and son of former president George H. W. Bush , and Democratic candidate Al Gore, then-Vice President....
King endorsed the presidential campaign of Ralph Nader
Ralph Nader presidential campaign, 2000
Ralph Nader ran in the 2000 United States presidential election as the nominee of the Green Party. He was also nominated by the Vermont Progressive Party and the United Citizens Party of South Carolina...
In 2003, King created The New Majority – an organization and program uniting Boston's communities of color – Blacks, Hispanics, Asians and Native Americans – uniting them around candidates for elective office.
King endorsed at-large city-councilor Sam Yoon
Sam Yoon
Sam Yoon is a former at-large member of the Boston City Council. He currently serves as the executive director for the National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations in Washington, DC. He was the first Asian American to hold elected office in Boston...
for Mayor on August 10, 2009. King praised Yoon's vision, his collaborative approach and his focus on improving the educational system in Boston.
1983 Candidacy for Mayor of Boston
In 1983, when incumbent Kevin White's withdrawal from contention after 16 years in office made the race wide open, Mel King went from obscureradical to serious contender for Mayor of Boston. Despite Boston's historical scars of racism, Mel King's grassroots activism culminated
in political momentum that nearly defeated the favorite, Raymond Flynn
Raymond Flynn
Raymond Leo Flynn , also known as Ray Flynn, served as Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts from 1984 until 1993. He was later appointed United States Ambassador to the Holy See by President Bill Clinton.-Early life:...
. Aside from securing the African American vote, King would have needed 30% of the white vote, which was almost accomplished. Flynn, an Irish-Catholic with roots in the gritty "Southie"(South Boston) area, would take the
election despite a landmark showing by King. Even with the defeat, the election and national attention was a historical turning point in the participation of African Americans in politics and urban policy.
Academic Work
In 1970, King created the Community Fellows Program (CFP) in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at MIT. He served as an Adjunct Professor of Urban Studies and Planning and director of the Community Fellows Program for twenty-five years until 1996. CFP, a nine-month long program brought community organizers and leaders from across America to reflect, research and study urban community politics, economics, social life, education, housing and media.In 1981, King's book, Chain of Change: Struggles for Black Community Developmenthttp://www.southendpress.org/2004/items/Chain was published by South End Press
South End Press
South End Press is a non-profit book publisher run on a model of participatory economics. It was founded in 1977 by Michael Albert, Lydia Sargent, John Schall, Pat Walker, Juliet Schor, Mary Lea, Joe Bowring, and Dave Millikan, among others, in Boston's South End...
. It focused on development in housing, education, employment and politics in Boston from the 1950s through the 1970s.
Upon his retirement from MIT, King established the South End Technology Center to provide computer training for low-income people.
In addition to writing Chain of Change and journal articles, King has used poetry to share his messages.
Books authored by King
- King, Melvin, Chain of Change: Struggles for Black Community Development, South End PressSouth End PressSouth End Press is a non-profit book publisher run on a model of participatory economics. It was founded in 1977 by Michael Albert, Lydia Sargent, John Schall, Pat Walker, Juliet Schor, Mary Lea, Joe Bowring, and Dave Millikan, among others, in Boston's South End...
, 1981. ISBN 0-89608-105-2
External links
- MassMoments: "Activists Erect Tent City in Boston"
- Boston Phoenix: "Still going strong at 75, former Boston mayoral candidate Mel King reflects on a life of political activism"
- Interview with Mel King about living in a diverse city for the WGBH series, Ten O'Clock News
- "WGBH: Gail Harris interviews Mel King"
- Time Magazine: "Boston wins by a landslide .. a black takes the primary in a racially scarred city"
- Dorchester Reporter: "The Campaign that changed Boston: 1983"
- MIT News Office: "Conference to Honor Mel King"
- South End Technology Center@Tent City
- The New Majority: Uniting Boston's Communities of Color