Civil Rights Heroes Mourn Senator Edward Kennedy As One Of Their Own

Senator Edward Kennedy is being remembered in the South for his decades of work on civil rights. Historians and civil rights leaders say Kennedy carried on the legacy of his brothers and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. after they were assassinated.

AP
Published: August 28, 2009

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ATLANTA (AP) - Senator Edward Kennedy is being remembered in the South for his decades of work on civil rights.

Historians and civil rights leaders say Kennedy carried on the legacy of his brothers and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. after they were assassinated.

Congressman John Lewis of Georgia says Kennedy called him the morning of President Barack Obama’s inauguration to celebrate the historic day. Lewis and Kennedy worked together for more than two decades on civil rights issues, including the Voting Rights Act.

Former Atlanta mayor and U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young says Kennedy became friends with Coretta Scott King after their loved ones were killed.

Kennedy died Tuesday at 77 after nearly half a century in the Senate.