Martin Luther King Jr. Day may be on the horizon, but that is not the reason Coretta Scott King has been a trending topic on X, formerly known as Twitter. Instead, many have begun discussing the life of King because her name has been referenced twice during actor Jonathan Majors’s recent legal battle.
First, audio of a conversation between Jonathan Majors and his ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari was made public. During their conversation, Majors asks Jabbari to behave more like Michelle Obama or Coretta Scott King.
“I’m a great man. A great man. I do great things for my culture and for the world…The woman that supports me needs to be a great woman,” Majors said.
After Majors was convicted of misdemeanor assault and harassment, he sat down with Linsey Davis to talk about the case, his career and his personal life. During the interview, the actor described his new girlfriend, Meagan Good, as his “Coretta.”
“She’s an angel,” Majors said about Good.
“She’s held me down like a Coretta [Scott King]. I’m so blessed to have her.”
Both of Majors’s references to the Civil Rights Movement figure have drawn backlash on social media. Most notably, King’s daughter, Bernice, seemingly responded after the actor’s latest interview.
“My mother wasn’t a prop. She was a peace advocate before she met my father and was instrumental in him speaking out against the Vietnam War. Please understand…my mama was a force,” she wrote on X.
Afterward, Majors directly responded to the criticism he’s received for evoking King’s name multiple times during his legal battles.
“My intention was to convey my utmost respect for Coretta Scott King, her achievements, and both her personal legacy and the one she shares with her husband, Dr. Martin Luther King,” Majors told TMZ.
“[Coretta] is a great woman, a very important figure in American and world history, and someone both Meagan and I are inspired by and deeply admire.”
