"As Black History Month begins, we mourn the loss of one of our greatest Americans, Coretta Scott King. While most remember her as the widow of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mrs. King was a determined civil rights activist in her own right.

"Before becoming Dr. King's partner in the struggle for equality, Mrs. King saw the ugliness of racism firsthand. Her childhood home in Alabama was burned down by racists, her father faced harassment from whites because of his successful trucking business, and her mother was forced to rent a bus to take her children to school because the town's buses refused to allow black students on board.

"In the nearly 38 years since her husband's assassination, Mrs. King has kept the dream alive with grace and dignity. She became a well-known and respected symbol for non-violent change, brotherhood, and equality.

"Because of her efforts, her husband's birthday is a national holiday and a celebration of the progress made since the days of segregation and a reminder of the work that needs to be done before the Kings' dream of equality and human rights for all is finally realized.

"As a leader of the Dr. Martin Luther King Center for Non-violent Social Change in Atlanta, Mrs. King worked tirelessly to not only improve voting rights and fight racism, but to give poor Americans the tools and resources they need to break the chains of poverty.

"Mrs. King is an inspiring figure in our nation's history. She continued her husband's legacy while creating her own. All Americans, regardless of their race, can learn valuable lessons from her poise, determination, and steadfast belief that all men and women were created equal and demand to be treated as such."