Bernice King Empowers Hundreds Of Women During 2024 Black Girls Dream Conference

Raised in a family of extraordinary leaders, Bernice credited her mother and other women around her for her faith, strength, and resilience.

On June 8, Bernice King, the youngest daughter of the iconic Martin Luther King Jr., addressed hundreds of women at the Black Girls Dream Conference.

Bernice candidly opened up about her upbringing as a shy and inquisitive young girl surrounded by tragedy yet exposed to resilient women who shaped her journey. “I went through some seasons of having a lot of anger because of all the loss I had in my life,” she revealed during the live session posted on the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium’s YouTube channel. The lawyer further opened up about her realization that her temper was self-destructive.

Raised in a family of extraordinary leaders, Bernice was instilled with faith, strength, and an understanding of her power. She spoke highly of her mother, Coretta Scott King, crediting her father’s notability to Coretta’s support. “She was a powerful woman in her own right before she met him,” Bernice said and emphasized the pivotal role played by the village of Black women around her in navigating the world.

The peace advocate challenged attendees to master and discipline their emotions, sharing an invaluable lesson from her mother –- to never make a decision while she was angry. She underscored the importance of including God as a partner in life’s decisions, stating, “When you’re making decisions in life, don’t leave out God…You need Him as a partner.” Moreover, she emphasized finding one’s purpose, urging attendees to find a problem they can answer and provide a solution for. Bernice challenged the women in the room to identify the problem they were called to solve and stand firm in their purpose as women.

Reflecting on her upbringing, Bernice sees herself as a role model for dignity in a world with few examples. “I’m obviously a student of my father’s nonviolence,” she stated, clarifying that nonviolence is a “spiritual thing and a mindset, transcending the physical realm.

The conference, hosted for the fourth year by the Southern Black Girls and Women’s Consortium, gathered over 1,300 girls and women in Atlanta for a weekend of inspiration and empowerment focused on Afrofuturism. According to the conference website, the 2024 event aimed to inspire attendees to dream bigger through workshops, discussions, and resources for executing those dreams.