Local News

Joseph Lowery released from hospital after two-week stay

By Ty Tagami
Feb 14, 2010

The Rev. Joseph Lowery is OK.

Two weeks to the day after he entered Emory University Hospital Midtown with a blood clot in the lung, the civil rights icon was released.

Lowery, 88, entered the hospital Jan. 30 complaining of shortness of breath. He was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism and placed in intensive care. Although friends said at the time that they thought he would be staying only a couple nights, he wound up in the hospital until Saturday.

He was released late last evening, hospital spokesman Lance Skelly said Sunday. Lowery remained in stable condition for nearly his entire time at the hospital.

The legendary Atlantan was a co-founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the signature civil rights group originally headed by Martin Luther King Jr. Lowerywas its president for two decades beginning in the late 1970s.

Lowery gave the benediction at the inauguration of President Barack Obama last year, and he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honor, last summer.

About the Author

Ty Tagami is a staff writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Since joining the newspaper in 2002, he has written about everything from hurricanes to homelessness. He has deep experience covering local government and education, and can often be found under the Gold Dome when lawmakers meet or in a school somewhere in the state.

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