Memorial services for Los Angeles civil rights leader, pillar of the African American community, and businessman Celes King IV will be held on Saturday, March 29, at 11 a.m. at the Angeles Mesa Presbyterian Church, located at 3751 W. 54th Street in Los Angeles. He died Saturday at age 70.
King served as vice chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), which is the lead organization behind the Martin Luther King Jr. Kingdom Day Parade in Los Angeles. He followed in the political footsteps of his late father, Celes King III, who was also a well-respected civil rights activist and businessman. His family has owned and operated the Celes King Bail Bond Agency for many years.
Together with his mother and father, King founded the California Black Republican Council in the 1980s. He was an active member of the Black Community, Clergy and Labor Alliance (BCCLA) and a strong supporter of Black Media throughout the region.
In a statement U.S. Rep. Karen Bass stated, “I join countless Angelenos, Californians, and Americans in mourning the loss of Celes King IV. Celes was a dear friend to many of us and a tireless activist up until his last days… Celes was a bridge builder, an advocate and a friend. He stood on the shoulders of a strong lineage of civil rights leaders and he built on their legacy. Angelenos and Californians for generations will benefit from the energy and compassion of this truly extraordinary man.”
“Los Angeles has lost one of its true heroes, with the passing of Celes King IV,” says Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable President Earl Ofari Hutchinson. “He, like his father Celes King III, was a titan in the civil rights struggle in Los Angeles and nationally. When the issue was the fight against injustice, discrimination and inequality, King IV was always on the frontline. I had the honor and pleasure of standing with King IV in many of those battles.”
