Family Reacts After Tulsi Gabbard Releases 230,000 MLK Jr. Files – What They Said Might Surprise You
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard delivered on yet another promise of transparency this week, announcing the release of a staggering 230,000 files related to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — one of the most controversial cases in American history.
The files, now available at archives.gov/mlk, include FBI memos, assassination leads, internal communications, and even statements from James Earl Ray’s former cellmate about a potential plot. The release comes under Executive Order 14176, a Trump-era directive that also ordered disclosures on the JFK and RFK assassinations.
Dr. Alveda King, niece of MLK Jr., welcomed the release, calling it a “historic step toward the truth that the American people deserve.”
But not all members of the King family were as supportive.
Martin Luther King III and Dr. Bernice King responded with caution and concern. In a statement, they urged Americans to view the files in full historical context, especially considering how MLK was targeted and smeared by the FBI under J. Edgar Hoover’s COINTELPRO operation.
They warned:
“These actions were not only invasions of privacy, but intentional assaults on the truth.”
They support transparency—but also condemned any effort to use the documents to attack their father’s legacy, warning that doing so would play into the same smear tactics that aimed to destroy the Civil Rights Movement decades ago.
The family again referenced the 1999 wrongful death lawsuit they say proved someone other than Ray killed Dr. King, despite the government’s firm stance that Ray acted alone.
For now, Americans will be left to sift through hundreds of thousands of pages. Whether bombshells emerge or not, Tulsi Gabbard has cracked open a door that many believe was locked for too long.
Mark Van der Veen offers some of the most analytical and insightful writings on politics. He regularly opines on the motives and political calculations of politicians and candidates, and whether or not their strategy will work. Van der Veen offers a contrast to many on this list by sticking mainly to a fact-based style of writing that is generally combative with opposing ideologies.
