Preston Theodore King (born March 3, 1936) is an American academic and

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

activist. He taught extensively in universities in the United Kingdom, nations of Africa, Australia and, finally, the United States. In 1961 King moved to exile in the United Kingdom after having done graduate work there. He was resisting racism by the local draft board in his hometown of Albany, Georgia, during the Jim Crow years. He did not return to the United States until receiving a presidential pardon from

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

in 2000.

Biography

King was born in

Albany, Georgia Albany ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia. Located on the Flint River, it is the seat of Dougherty County, and is the sole incorporated city in that county. Located in southwest Georgia, it is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia m ...

, the youngest of seven sons of Margaret (née Slater) and Clennon Washington King Sr., both of whom graduated from

Tuskegee Institute Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU), formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute, is a private, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was founded on Independence Day in 1881 by the state legislature. The campus was de ...

. Preston's elder brothers included Chevene Bowers King,

Clennon Washington King Jr. Clennon Washington King Jr. (July 18, 1920 – February 12, 2000) was the second African-American man to run for the office of President of the United States after George Edwin Taylor, and whose attempts at civil rights actions and running fo ...

, and Slater King. After attending local schools, King studied at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

in the late 1950s, and at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

in 1961. After his draft board learned that he was African American, it addressed him as "Preston" rather than using "Mr." He refused to respond. Accused of draft evasion, King went into exile in the United Kingdom to avoid imprisonment and because he thought the charges unjust. He taught alternately in England and Africa, at

Keele University Keele University, officially known as the University of Keele, is a public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, Keele ...

, the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...

, the

University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...

, the

University of East Africa The University of East Africa was established on 29 June 1963"Universities: East Africa", ''A Historical Companion To Postcolonial Thought In English'' (Columbia University Press, 2005) Prem Poddar and David Johnson, eds., p. 489. and served Keny ...

, and the

University of Nairobi The University of Nairobi (uonbi or UoN; ) is a collegiate research university based in Nairobi. It is the largest university in Kenya. Although its history as an educational institution dates back to 1956, it did not become an independent univer ...

(where he was department chair). In 1976 King moved to the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensiv ...

in Australia, becoming head of his school. In 1986 he returned to the UK, to Lancaster University, where he again chaired his department. After much resistance in Georgia, he was pardoned by President

in 2000. He had been unable to return to the US for the funeral of his father or of two brothers.. Following his return to the United States from exile after his presidential pardon in 2000, King taught at

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

and Morehouse College in Atlanta. He has also held numerous visiting positions..

Personal life

King married British Jewish social justice activist Murreil Hazel Stern, sister of physician

Miriam Stoppard Miriam, Lady Hogg ( Stern; formerly Stoppard; born 12 May 1937), known professionally by her former married name Miriam Stoppard, is an English medical doctor, journalist, author and television presenter. Early life and medical career Miria ...

, in 1963. Their daughter

Oona King Oona Tamsyn King, Baroness King of Bow (born 22 October 1967) is a business executive and former British Labour Party politician. She was a Labour Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow from 1997 until 2005. Early life Oona King was ...

(born 1967) is a Labour party politician and former Member of Parliament. She is known as Baroness King of Bow.

Selected bibliography

Books

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References

External links

Georgiaencyclopedia.org

Answers.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Preston Theodore 1936 births Living people Activists for African-American civil rights American expatriate academics Alumni of the London School of Economics University of Maryland, College Park alumni Academic staff of the University of Ghana Academics of the University of East Anglia Academics of the University of Sheffield Academics of Lancaster University Emory University faculty Morehouse College faculty People from Albany, Georgia Recipients of American presidential pardons