Vincent G. Harding, the civil rights activist, author, and professor emeritus of religion and social transformation at the Iliff School of Theology in Denver, died on May 19 in Philadelphia after suffering a carotid artery aneurysm. He was 82 years old.
Professor Harding was a native of New York City. He held a bachelor’s degree in history from the City University of New York. Dr. Harding earned a master’s degree in journalism at Columbia University and a second master’s degree and a Ph.D. in history from the University of Chicago.
Working for the Mennonite Service Committee in Atlanta, Dr. Harding was an associate of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. After Dr. King’s assassination, Dr. Harding served as the first director of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Center.
Dr. Harding joined the faculty at the Iliff School of Theology in 1981 and was granted emeritus status in 2004. He was the author, co-author, or editor of more than 20 books including There is a River: The Black Struggle for Freedom in America (Harcourt, 1981), Martin Luther King: The Inconvenient Hero (Orbis Books, 2008), and Hope and History: Why We Must Share the Story of the Movement (Orbis Books, 2010).
