Boston lost its Lion King in March with the passing of Melvin H. King at the age of 94. It is impossible to summarize the impact that Mel’s life had on the city, and on the people who endeavor to do justice to his life and vision.

State Senator Lydia Edwards put it this way:

All I can say is thank you.
There will be a list
of political accolades
that expand over decades that speak to Mel’s vision and intellect.
But it was his steadfast dedication
to revolutionary connection
every Sunday at his house that left a lasting mark.
The act of breaking bread
enjoying food and thoughts.

He dedicated his life
to the political radical
idea, that as he said “love is the
question and the answer”.

Thank you Mel for fighting, running, laughing, and living.

Rest in power.

King brilliantly balanced holistic, big-picture thinking with small-scale, person-to-person interactions that called all of us to our higher selves. He knew that large-scale systemic change must be modeled at the individual level and built through collaborative action.

He was a teacher, an organizer, a writer, an artist, a state legislator, and a transformative candidate for Boston Mayor. King knew that his 1983 campaign had put a marker in the sand and that the city would never look back. On election night, Mel described the campaign as “what historians will recognize as a turning point in the social, cultural, and political history of Boston.” Indeed, it ushered in, through countless interactions over the following years, today’s Boston which is brimming with visionary leadership reflective of its diverse populations.

That campaign gave Boston the Rainbow Coalition, which was borrowed by Jesse Jackson at the national level in two successive campaigns for President. In 1997, King recognized that a new political formation was necessary, and founded the Rainbow Coalition Party. He said of the Democrats, “I cannot be identified with parties that have those kinds of policies, and which really don’t care about workers.” In 2002, King proudly led the merger of the Rainbow Coalition Party with the Massachusetts Green Party, forming today’s Green-Rainbow Party and supporting then-gubernatorial candidate Jill Stein.

“Jill Stein is the only candidate who will speak truth to power,” said King. “She’s the only one that makes issues of racism and social justice integral parts of her campaign.”

With King’s passing, Stein memorialized Mel this way:

Mel King was the inspiration for so much of what is just and decent in politics today. He was ahead of the curve throughout his decades of activism, including his pioneering legislation for community gardens, access to sustainable fresh food, and community development corporations to provide affordable housing and jobs for people, not profit. Mel’s vision and courage are more timely and needed than ever. The Green-Rainbow Party is honored to carry forward his living political legacy.

Mel’s funeral service was streamed live and is available to watch online. It is well worth watching to get just a glimpse of what Mel meant when he said “the power of love is infinite.”

Rest in peace.
Rest in power.
Rest in love.
Mel King, presente.