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Ralph Abernathy (David Abernathy) was born on 21 March, 1926 in Linden, Alabama, U.S., is an American civil rights activist and minister (1926–1990). Discover Ralph Abernathy's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Learn How rich is he in this year and how he spends money? Also learn how he earned most of networth at the age of 64 years old?

Popular As David Abernathy
Occupation Clergyman, activist
Age 64 years old
Zodiac Sign Aries
Born 21 March 1926
Birthday 21 March
Birthplace Linden, Alabama, U.S.
Date of death 17 April, 1990
Died Place Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Nationality United States

We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 21 March. He is a member of famous Miscellaneous with the age 64 years old group.

Ralph Abernathy Height, Weight & Measurements

At 64 years old, Ralph Abernathy height not available right now. We will update Ralph Abernathy's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible.

Physical Status
Height Not Available
Weight Not Available
Body Measurements Not Available
Eye Color Not Available
Hair Color Not Available

Who Is Ralph Abernathy's Wife?

His wife is Juanita Jones Abernathy

Family
Parents Not Available
Wife Juanita Jones Abernathy
Sibling Not Available
Children 5, including Ralph III and Donzaleigh

Ralph Abernathy Net Worth

His net worth has been growing significantly in 2023-2024. So, how much is Ralph Abernathy worth at the age of 64 years old? Ralph Abernathy’s income source is mostly from being a successful Miscellaneous. He is from United States. We have estimated Ralph Abernathy's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets.

Net Worth in 2024 $1 Million - $5 Million
Salary in 2024 Under Review
Net Worth in 2023 Pending
Salary in 2023 Under Review
House Not Available
Cars Not Available
Source of Income Miscellaneous

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Timeline

1926

Ralph David Abernathy Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister.

Abernathy, 10th of William L. and Louivery Valentine Abernathy ( Bell)'s 12 children, was born on March 11, 1926, on their family 500 acre farm in Linden, Alabama.

Abernathy's father was the first African-American to vote in Marengo County, Alabama, and the first to serve on a grand jury there.

Abernathy attended Linden Academy (a Baptist school founded by the First Mt. Pleasant District Association).

At Linden Academy, Abernathy led his first demonstrations to improve the livelihoods of his fellow students.

During World War II, he enlisted in the United States Army advancing in rank becoming platoon sergeant before being discharged.

Afterwards he enrolled at Alabama State University using the benefits from the G.I. Bill, which he earned with his service.

As a sophomore, he was elected president of the student council, and led a successful hunger strike to raise the quality of the food served on the campus.

While still a college student, Abernathy announced his call to the ministry, which he had envisioned since he was a small boy growing up in a devout Baptist family.

1948

He was ordained in the Baptist tradition in 1948.

As a leader of the civil rights movement, he was a close friend and mentor of Martin Luther King Jr. He collaborated with King and E. D. Nixon to create the Montgomery Improvement Association, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott and co-created and was an executive board member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).

He was ordained a Baptist minister in 1948 and preached his first sermon on Mother's Day (in honor of his recently deceased mother).

1950

In 1950 he graduated with a bachelor's degree in mathematics.

During the summer of 1950 Abernathy hosted a radio show and became the first black disc jockey on a white radio station in Montgomery, Alabama.

1951

In the fall, he went to Atlanta University earning a Master of Arts degree in sociology with high honors in 1951.

While enrolled at Alabama State Abernathy pledged becoming an initiated brother of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.

He began his professional career in 1951, when he was appointed as the dean of men at Alabama State University.

Later in the same year, he became the senior pastor of the First Baptist Church, the largest black church in Montgomery; he held the position for ten years.

1952

He married Juanita Odessa Jones of Uniontown, Alabama, on August 31, 1952.

Together they had five children: Ralph David Abernathy Jr., Juandalynn Ralpheda, Donzaleigh Avis, Ralph David Abernathy III, and Kwame Luthuli Abernathy.

1953

Their first child, Ralph Abernathy Jr., died suddenly on August 18, 1953, less than 2 days after his birth on August 16, while their other children lived on to adulthood.

His grandson, Micah Abernathy, is currently an American football player for the Atlanta Falcons.

1954

In 1954, Abernathy met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who – at the time – was just becoming a pastor himself at a nearby church.

Abernathy mentored King and the two men eventually became close friends.

1955

After the arrest of Rosa Parks on December 1, 1955, for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, Abernathy, then a member of the Montgomery NAACP), collaborated with King to create the Montgomery Improvement Association, which organized the Montgomery bus boycott. Along with fellow English professor Jo Ann Robinson, they called for and distributed flyers asking the black citizens of Montgomery to stay off the buses. The boycott attracted national attention, and a federal court case that ended on December 17, 1956, when the U.S. Supreme Court, in Browder v. Gayle, upheld an earlier District Court decision that the bus segregation was unconstitutional. The 381-day transit boycott, challenging the "Jim Crow" segregation laws, had been successful. And on December 20, 1956, the boycott came to an end.

After the boycotts, Abernathy's home and church were bombed.

His family were barely able to escape their home, but they were unharmed.

Abernathy's church, Mt. Olive Church, Bell Street Church, and the home of Robert Graetz were also bombed on that evening, while King, Abernathy, and 58 other black leaders from the south were meeting at the Southern Negro Leaders Conference on Transportation and Nonviolent Integration, in Atlanta.

[[File:Abernathy Children on front line leading the SELMA TO MONTGOMERY MARCH for the RIGHT TO VOTE.JPG|thumb|Abernathy and his wife [[Juanita Abernathy]] with Dr. Martin Luther King and his wife Coretta Scott King

1968

He became president of the SCLC following the assassination of King in 1968; he led the Poor People's Campaign in Washington, D.C., as well as other marches and demonstrations for disenfranchised Americans.

He also served as an advisory committee member of the Congress on Racial Equality (CORE).

1971

In 1971, Abernathy addressed the United Nations speaking about world peace.

1973

He also assisted in brokering a deal between the FBI and American Indian Movement protestors during the Wounded Knee incident of 1973.

1977

He retired from his position as president of the SCLC in 1977 and became president emeritus.

Later that year he unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives for the 5th district of Georgia.

1982

He later founded the Foundation for Economic Enterprises Development, and he testified before the U.S. Congress in support of extending the Voting Rights Act in 1982.

1989

In 1989, Abernathy wrote And the Walls Came Tumbling Down, a controversial autobiography about his and King's involvement in the civil rights movement.

Abernathy eventually became less active in politics and returned to his work as a minister.

1990

He died of heart disease on April 17, 1990.

His tombstone is engraved with the words "I tried".