Creative Maladjustment: An Interview with Donzaleigh Abernathy Donzaleigh Abernathy—goddaughter of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.—shares her thoughts on the civil rights movement and the legacy of racism in the United States. Actor, singer, writer, and civil rights activist Donzaleigh Abernathy is goddaughter of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and daughter of the Reverend Dr. Ralph David Abernathy, King’s best friend and partner in the civil rights movement — who co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and became president of it after King’s assassination on April 4, 1968. Her mother was civil rights activist Juanita Abernathy.