In the Genius: MLK/X episode appropriately titled "Matriarchs," Coretta Scott King (Weruche Opia) and Betty Shabazz (Jayme Lawson) are front and center.
Despite the attempts to sideline her, Coretta comes to the rescue of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) by calling then-presidential candidate John F. Kennedy (Adam Cropper ) and asking him to get her husband released from prison. Meanwhile, when Malcolm (Aaron Pierre) prevented Betty from working at the temple, she left him in protest.
As fascinating as these story developments were on the show, did they happen in real life? Here's what we found out.
Did Coretta ask John F. Kennedy to help get Martin Luther King Jr. released from prison?
The fiction
In the fall of 1960, Martin and Coretta are in their kitchen talking about his recent stint in jail for protesting. She points out he didn't talk much about it, and he simply describes his experience in lockup as "boring." Later, Martin, Coretta and their loved ones go to court to hear the sentence the judge will hand Martin for his latest brush with the law, and are completely devastated to hear the judge sentence Martin to four months of hard labor at a penitentiary.
After learning of the harsh punishment, Daddy King (Lennie James) assembles a team of men in Martin and Coretta's home to talk about strategy on how to appeal the sentence and get Martin released. She wants to contact her friend working for the Democratic presidential nominee, John F. Kennedy, to ask if Kennedy can help with the matter. Daddy King dismisses the idea as he's working with Republican presidential nominee, Richard Nixon, on a possible plan. She relents to her father-in-law's position.
However, when Daddy King subsequently informs Coretta her husband has been taken to another facility, she gets on the phone with her friend in the Kennedy camp, again, against Daddy King's wishes.
The friend is able to convince Kennedy to call Coretta, and the two speak directly. Not long after their phone call, Martin is back home crediting his wife for his freedom.
The fact
As reported by Time, in October of 1960, a judge sentenced Martin to hard labor in prison. One night, while he was in a Dekalb County jail, he was awakened and driven to the Reidsville Maximum State Prison. There was fear that if Martin was put to work alongside violent offenders, he would be murdered by someone who had nothing to lose.
Deeply distressed by Martin's incarceration, Dekalb History claims Coretta called Harris Wofford, a dear friend of the Kings and a Kennedy staffer, and shared, "They are going to kill him. I know they are going to kill him."
Wofford then worked with Sargent Shriver, Kennedy's brother-in-law, to sway senator and Democratic presidential Hopeful Kennedy to leap to action. According to The Los Angeles Times, Kennedy and his team would make a few calls with the governor of Georgia, Ernest Vandiver, about getting Martin released. As it was stated:
"Gov. Ernest Vandiver had promised to get King out of jail on the condition that Kennedy make no public statement about the matter. Vandiver wanted to send out a strong, clear signal of segregationist resolve in Georgia."
With this agreement in place, Wofford still thought Kennedy should do more, especially as Kennedy attempted to sway the Black vote, and the idea of Kennedy reaching out to Coretta over the phone was pitched. Kennedy was initially resistant to the idea, but Shriver eventually talked him into it. The phone call lasted roughly 90 seconds and while Kennedy offered his support to Coretta, he didn't share that he had a deal with the Georgia governor to get Martin released. Within days of the call, Martin was a free man.
Kennedy of course wound up winning the presidential election, winning the Black vote in a 70% to 30% split with Nixon.
Did Betty leave Malcolm X?
The fiction
Betty goes to the temple expecting to teach her usual class, but is surprised to find her friend, Sister Grace (Elle Lorraine) already standing in front of the room doing the job. The friend informs her that Malcolm ordered the switch, a fact he didn't share with his wife.
When Betty goes to his office to confront him about the matter, he claims he wants his wife at home with their daughter and professes to wanting to uphold the perfect image of a Muslim family as dictated by Elijah Muhammad. He dismisses the conversation, leaving Betty annoyed.
However, Betty would fume when she revisits the topic the following day at breakfast and Malcolm X doesn't move away from his original position. His digging in his heels prompts her to pack a bag, grab her baby and head to Detroit to see her adoptive mother. After days go by, Malcolm X eventually travels to Detroit and speaks with Betty, reuniting in the process.
The fact
In our research, we weren't able to determine if Betty actually left Malcolm. However, we did discover that the couple allegedly faced marital problems. As reported by The Huffington Post, Malcolm X wrote a letter to Elijah Muhammad talking about his frustrations with Betty. Furthermore, deceased Columbia University professor, Manning Marable, wrote a Pulitzer Prize-winning biography about Malcolm X and alleged it was probable that the couple faced infidelity in their marriage.
Episodes of Genius: MLK/X continue to air on Thursdays on National Geographic and become available on Fridays on Hulu and Disney Plus.
