PHOTOS: Rev. C.T. Vivian through the years

Martin Luther King Jr.

A minister and a leader in nonviolent protest, C.T. Vivian was one of Martin Luther King Jr.’s lieutenants in the fight for civil rights and justice. He participated in his first sit-in in Peoria, Illinois, in 1947, nearly a decade before the Montgomery bus boycotts and well before King burst upon the stage. A skilled and gifted orator, King called Vivian “greatest preacher that ever lived.”

One of his oldest friends from the movement is comedian and activist Dick Gregory. C.T. Vivian's often recounts an evening where Gregory showed up at his Atlanta home for a party. Vivian said afterwards, he had to explain to his children some of Gregory's "blue," humor.

C.T. Vivian, integration leader, left, leads a prayer on the courthouse steps in Selma, Ala., February 5, 1965, after Sheriff James Clark, background with helmet, stopped him at the door with a court order. Vivian led hundreds of demonstrators armed with petitions asking longer voter registration hours. Clark arrested them when they refused to disperse. (AP Photo/Horace Cort)

C.T. Vivian was able to forge alliances across the globe, including with PLO leader Yassar Arafat.

The Vivians: C.T. Vivian and his wife of 58 years, Octavia, had six children. In this family photo from the late 1970s, the parents are surrounded by (standing) Cordy, Denise, Kira and Mark. (Kneeling) Al and Charisse.

C.T. Vivian's contemporaries included Jesse Jackson and Ralph David Abernathy, shown here in Chicago with a local resident.

A smile is never far from Vivian's face, especially during victories like this one in Chicago

Years after the famous confrontation on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, C.T. Vivian returned with President Bill Clinton.

As a child, C.T. Vivian's mother and grandmother dressed him in tailored suits, even during the Great Depression. C.T. Vivian is at LEFT. Family Photo

Although he was older than many of the students in Nashville, C.T. Vivian insisted on joining them on the Freedom Rides through the deep South, risking his life and freedom. Family Photo

For 58 years, C.T. Vivian was devoted to his wife, Octavia, who died in 2011. Family Photo

Rev. C.T. Vivian, center, is shown in a photograph with U.S. President and first lady Barack and Michelle Obama at his home Tuesday afternoon in Atlanta, Ga., October 1, 2013. Vivian is a minister, author, and was a close friend and lieutenant of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. during the American Civil Rights Movement. On August 8, 2013, President Barack Obama named Rev. Vivian as a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He's still the firebrand who stood toe to toe with the sheriff in Selma. JASON GETZ / JGETZ@AJC.COM

Rev. C.T. Vivian looks through his library at his home Tuesday afternoon in Atlanta, Ga., October 1, 2013. Vivian is a minister, author, and was a close friend and lieutenant of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. during the American Civil Rights Movement. On August 8, 2013, President Barack Obama named Rev. Vivian as a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He's still the firebrand who stood toe to toe with the sheriff in Selma. JASON GETZ / JGETZ@AJC.COM

While participating in the Freedom Rides, C.T. Vivian was arrested in Mississippi. Convicted, he was shipped to the notorious Parchman Prison. Family Photo

In grade school, C.T. Vivian fought nearly every day. Sometimes he was the victims of bullies and sometimes he was the instigator. He rarely lost. In the 3rd grade, he was the only black kid in his class. Family Photo

Build, Baby Build, was part of a campaign C.T. Vivian led in Chicago.

C.T. Vivian has participated in hundreds of marches throughout the South. He is 3rd from the right.

Rev. C.T. Vivian looks through old newspaper clippings from the early 1970s at his home Tuesday afternoon in Atlanta, Ga., October 1, 2013. Vivian is a minister, author, and was a close friend and lieutenant of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. during the American Civil Rights Movement. On August 8, 2013, President Barack Obama named Rev. Vivian as a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He's still the firebrand who stood toe to toe with the sheriff in Selma. JASON GETZ / JGETZ@AJC.COM

Martin Luther King Jr. called C.T. Vivian the greatest preacher that ever lived. Family Photo

As a teenager, C.T. Vivian learned early, that while he was popular in town and in school, things would always be different for him.

C.T. Vivian graduated from Macomb High School in 1942. A school leader, he became president or vice president of every club he joined. Family Photo

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed (left) shacks hands with Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian during a "Congratulatory & Send-Off Celebration" of Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient to be Vivian in the atrium of Atlanta City Hall on Saturday October 19th, 2013. PHIL SKINNER / PSKINNER@AJC.COM

Presidential Medal of Freedom honorees Cordy Tindell, C.T. Vivian, left, and Oprah Winfrey talk before President Barack Obama speaks at a dinner in honor of the Presidential Medal of Freedom awardees.

Civil rights activist Cordy Tindell "C.T." Vivian laughs with President Barack Obama after the president awarded him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

Bernard LaFayette, who led the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Poor People's Campaign in 1968, and the Rev. C.T. Vivian of Atlanta stand for the recommitment ceremony to King's civil rights legacy Sunday in Washington. Vivian and LaFayette were trained in non violence by James Lawson, who trained hundreds of students and adults in nonviolent social resistance during the sit-ins and desegregation efforts in Nashville. They were also a part of the Freedom Rides, which began in 1961 to test desegregation laws in public transportation.

Rev. C.T. Vivian, of Atlanta, a leader in the civil rights movement and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, will receive the presidential Medal of Freedom this year.

C.T. Vivian holds his Presidential Medal of Freedom on Tuesday, July 25, 2017. The National Monuments Foundation will be acquiring and managing the world-class library of Atlanta Civil Rights icon, C.T. Vivian. The library will be housed in the new Cook Park in Vine City. Vivian lived in the same Vine City neighborhood that will border Cook Park where his library is to be constructed under a 101-foot Peace Column. The 6,000 volume C.T. Vivian Library is one of the most impressive private collections in the city. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

July 25, 2017 Atlanta - C.T. Vivian looks at a painting of himself with President Barack Obama as he holds his Presidential Medal of Freedom on Tuesday, July 25, 2017. The National Monuments Foundation will be acquiring and managing the world-class library of Atlanta Civil Rights icon, C.T. Vivian. The library will be housed in the new Cook Park in Vine City. Vivian lived in the same Vine City neighborhood that will border Cook Park where his library is to be constructed under a 101-foot Peace Column. The 6,000 volume C.T. Vivian Library is one of the most impressive private collections in the city. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

July 25, 2017 Atlanta - Portrait of C.T. Vivian at his home on Tuesday, July 25, 2017. The National Monuments Foundation will be acquiring and managing the world-class library of Atlanta Civil Rights icon, C.T. Vivian. The library will be housed in the new Cook Park in Vine City. Vivian lived in the same Vine City neighborhood that will border Cook Park where his library is to be constructed under a 101-foot Peace Column. The 6,000 volume C.T. Vivian Library is one of the most impressive private collections in the city. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

Portrait of C.T. Vivian at his home library as his daughter Charisse Thornton (background) and Dawnn Mitchell work on checking inventory on Tuesday, July 25, 2017. The National Monuments Foundation will be acquiring and managing the world-class library of Atlanta Civil Rights icon, C.T. Vivian. The library will be housed in the new Cook Park in Vine City. Vivian lived in the same Vine City neighborhood that will border Cook Park where his library is to be constructed under a 101-foot Peace Column. The 6,000 volume C.T. Vivian Library is one of the most impressive private collections in the city. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

July 25, 2017 Atlanta - C.T. Vivian looks through a book at his home library on Tuesday, July 25, 2017. The National Monuments Foundation will be acquiring and managing the world-class library of Atlanta Civil Rights icon, C.T. Vivian. The library will be housed in the new Cook Park in Vine City. Vivian lived in the same Vine City neighborhood that will border Cook Park where his library is to be constructed under a 101-foot Peace Column. The 6,000 volume C.T. Vivian Library is one of the most impressive private collections in the city. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

July 25, 2017 Atlanta - C.T. Vivian reads out his favorite poem "If We Must Die" by Claude McKay at his home library on Tuesday, July 25, 2017. The National Monuments Foundation will be acquiring and managing the world-class library of Atlanta Civil Rights icon, C.T. Vivian. The library will be housed in the new Cook Park in Vine City. Vivian lived in the same Vine City neighborhood that will border Cook Park where his library is to be constructed under a 101-foot Peace Column. The 6,000 volume C.T. Vivian Library is one of the most impressive private collections in the city. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

December 27, 2016, Atlanta: Alabama head football coach Nick Saban and Washington head football coach Chris Petersen greet Ambassador Andrew Young (seated left) and Dr. C.T. Vivian at the conclusion of a Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl tour of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site to hear first-hand accounts from Civil Rights leaders at the Historic Ebenezer First Baptist Church on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2016, in Atlanta. For more about the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, turn to Sports, Page C1. Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com

Dr. C.T. Vivian speaks while Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl participants from Alabama and Washington football teams tour the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site and hear first-hand accounts from Civil Rights leaders at the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2016, in Atlanta.

Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian will speak at Georgia Piedmont Technical College May 31.

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One of his oldest friends from the movement is comedian and activist Dick Gregory. C.T. Vivian's often recounts an evening where Gregory showed up at his Atlanta home for a party. Vivian said afterwards, he had to explain to his children some of Gregory's "blue," humor.

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