IN MEMORIAM: Clara Ester, Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 78

July 28, 2026

Clara Ester, a civil rights activist who witnessed Martin Luther King Jr. 's assassination in Memphis in 1968, has died at age 78. As a 20-year-old college student actively involved in the sanitation workers' strike, she was at the Lorraine Motel when King was shot and immediately rushed to help him, attempting to stop his bleeding before police questioned her.

Who is affected

Clara Ester (deceased civil rights activist and eyewitness to MLK's assassination)
Andrew Young (believed to be the last surviving eyewitness to King's shooting)
The Memphis community and civil rights movement
Communities served by the Dumas Wesley Community Center in Mobile, Alabama
The United Methodist Church and United Methodist Women organization
Children, seniors, and people experiencing homelessness who benefited from Ester's work

What action is being taken

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Why it matters

This marks the loss of one of the final living eyewitnesses to a pivotal moment in American civil rights history—the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Her death, combined with Jesse Jackson Sr.'s passing in February, leaves Andrew Young as potentially the sole surviving witness to preserve firsthand testimony of that tragic event. Ester's life demonstrates the long-term impact of racial trauma on activists while also exemplifying decades of continued service to marginalized communities through social justice work.

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint