Legal fights by heirs of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Rosa Parks show difficulty of legacies

FILE - This Oct. 24, 1966 file photo shows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Atlanta. Martin Luther King’s children are quarreling over who owns his Nobel Peace Prize and his Bible. Malcolm X’s heirs are suing to block a book deal to publicize his post-Mecca diary, an agreement brokered by one of their siblings. The fight over Rosa Parks’ estate has her valuable mementos stuck in a New York City warehouse. (AP Photo, File) (The Associated Press)

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FILE - This 1963 file photo shows Malcolm X. Malcolm X’s heirs are suing to block a book deal to publicize his post-Mecca diary, an agreement brokered by one of their siblings. Martin Luther King’s children are quarreling over who owns his Nobel Peace Prize and his Bible. The fight over Rosa Parks’ estate has her valuable mementos stuck in a New York City warehouse. (AP Photo, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - This Oct. 28, 1986 file photo shows Rosa Parks at Ellis Island in New York. The fight over Parks’ estate has her valuable mementos stuck in a New York City warehouse. Martin Luther King’s children are quarreling over who owns his Nobel Peace Prize and his Bible. Malcolm X’s heirs are suing to block a book deal to publicize his post-Mecca diary, an agreement brokered by one of their siblings.(AP Photo, File) (The Associated Press)

WASHINGTON – America's greatest civil rights leaders may belong to the ages. But legal fights among family, friends and outsiders over control of their earthly possessions seem never-ending.

With each court battle, historians worry about the negative impact such infighting might have on the legacy of the civil rights movement.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s daughter accuses her brothers of plotting to sell their father's personal Bible and his Nobel Peace Prize. She says those items are "sacred" and worth more than money.

Malcolm X's daughters are suing to block a book deal, signed by one sister, to publish their father's diary.

Rosa Parks' mementos, including her Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal of Honor, have sat in a New York warehouse for years because of a battle over her estate.