MINNEAPOLIS - The niece of the Martin Luther King, Jr. has used the Democratic Party convention in Denver this week to denounce abortion, which she calls a violation of civil rights.

Alveda King, who traveled to Denver this week during the Democratic Party convention, notes that the party's platform does not recognize the life of the unborn to be a civil right. And she says while the Democrats have reached out to Christian voters, she wants to remind those Christians that the Bible supports the rights of all people -- and "that includes the pre-born," she adds.
 
Yesterday, King released a statement honoring the 45th anniversary of her uncle's "I Have a Dream" speech. She described MLK as a man of God, a man of great compassion, and a man of non-violence who once said "the Negro cannot win as long as he is willing to sacrifice the lives of his children for comfort and safety."
 
As King put it yesterday, "I know in my heart that if Uncle Martin were alive today, he would join with me in the greatest civil rights struggle of this generation -- the recognition of the unborn child's basic right to life. My uncle Martin would agree that we cannot end poverty, hunger, or suffering by killing those who might suffer. We cannot claim to guarantee equal rights if we deny the rights of the helpless. And we cannot feign ignorance of the fact that those who are torn apart, crushed, or left to die on an abortionist's table are just as human as we are."
 
During her time in Denver this week, King went to a black neighborhood where she joined the Roman Catholic archbishop and other clergy in protesting outside a Planned Parenthood clinic. She has now taken her message to Minneapolis, where Republicans will meet next week. She says she is also meeting with other Christians and praying for America.

Associated Press - 8/29/2008 7:25:00 AM

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