AL HJR167

House Joint Resolution mourning the death of Dr. Levi Watkins, Jr., a renowned heart surgeon and civil rights activist who lived 70 years.

Dr. Watkins was born June 13, 1944, in Parsons, Kansas, and was baptized by Reverend Ralph Abernathy; he later joined Dexter Avenue Baptist Church under Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s pastorship in Montgomery, Alabama.

Dr. Watkins earned a Bachelor's Degree from Tennessee State University and became the first black student to enter and graduate from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and was the first black chief resident in cardiac surgery at Johns Hopkins University Hospital.

Dr. Watkins was the first surgeon to successfully implant an automatic heart defibrillator in a human patient and conducted groundbreaking research at Harvard Medical School on angiotensin blockers for treating congestive heart failure; he was nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Legislature of Alabama expresses gratitude for Dr. Watkins' abundant life and his advocacy for civil rights and inclusion in medical education, and offers condolences to his family and friends.