Clara Ester, a prominent civil rights activist and witness to Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination, has passed away. She was 78 years old at the time of her death on July 9. Her passing marks a significant loss for those with direct memory of that pivotal moment in American history.
Ester was a 20-year-old college student when she was present at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis on April 4, 1968, the day King was shot. According to her account, she was at the motel for dinner when she witnessed King speaking on the balcony with people below. After hearing the gunshot, she rushed to his side and attempted to assist him, loosening his belt and requesting towels to help stop the bleeding before he was taken away by ambulance. She was subsequently questioned by police and remained at the hotel before being allowed to leave.
Ester’s background in civil rights activism was shaped by her upbringing in Memphis, where she attended Centenary United Methodist Church under the leadership of Rev. James Lawson, a civil rights leader. Church discussions of civil rights issues and Lawson’s involvement in the sanitation workers’ strike motivated her to become active in the movement. She participated regularly in mass meetings and picket lines during this period.
Following King’s assassination, Ester relocated to Mobile, Alabama, where she worked as a neighborhood organizer at the Dumas Wesley Community Center, eventually serving as executive director until her retirement in 2006. In 1986, she was commissioned as a deaconess in the United Methodist Church, a lay minister position. She maintained active involvement in the church throughout her life and held leadership positions, including serving as national vice president of United Methodist Women.
With Ester’s death and the earlier passing of Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. in February, former King aide and U.N. ambassador Andrew Young is believed to be the last surviving eyewitness to King’s assassination.
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