Former Georgia state Sen. Ralph David Abernathy, III was laid to rest Friday afternoon. He died the morning of Match 17 after a battle with liver cancer.
Photos | Civil rights icons attend funeral for Ralph David Abernathy, III
Abernathy was one of five children of civil rights pioneer Rev. Ralph David Abernathy, Sr., co-founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
Rev. Jessie Jackson, Rep. Hank Johnson (4th Dist.), Rep. John Lewis (5th Dist.), Rev. Joseph Lowery were among the hundreds who came to honor the man they say honored the legacy of the civil rights movement.
At the funeral, mourners looked over a program that spoke of how young Ralph grew up as part of the movement -- marching alongside his dad -- and clinging to the same hopes and dreams as everyone else.
He marched with his dad and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from the time he was a small child. Born in 1959, he participated in the 1963 march on Washington and the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery march.
"We feel attached to his work as a youngster, an activist, as a freedom fighter. That’s his legacy," said Jackson.
"He extended the legacy of a freedom fighter. He didn’t just live, but he was a change-agent."
"He was supportive of the movement. He followed his father’s footsteps," said Rev. Joseph Lowery.
He represented portions of the City of Atlanta in the state House of Representatives from 1987-to-1991 and in the state Senate from 1992-to-1999. and later, became a minister, like his dad.
His dream was to preserve his dad’s church, West Hunter Street Baptist, as a national historic site.
Congressman Lewis told the audience at the funeral that still needs to happen.
"All of us need to pull together and work together and make that dream come true," said Lewis, a statement that drew applause from the crowd.
He leaves behind his mother, Juanita Abernathy, his wife, Annette -- in addition to two sons and a daughter.
Abernathy was 57 years old.
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