01/14/2026
Claudette Colvin passed away today at the age of 86. Claudette Colvin was a brave young woman who at 15 years old, Skylers age now, was done with segregation and launched her own bus boycott when she refused to give up her seat to a white woman. This led to her arrest. Claudette was one of four plaintiffs in the first federal court case challenging bus segregation in Montgomery, AL. A panel of 3 judges ruled bus segregation unconstitutional, a pivotal decision in the fight for civil rights. Claudette continued to fight injustices when she later married a white man while in*******al marriage was still illegal. May we continue to have brave young people who fight for what's right during this time of injustice across our nation. May Ms. Claudette Colvin rest in power.
Today's young phenomenal Black woman is Claudette Colvin! Month's before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat, 15 year old Claudette did the exact same thing. In an interview with the New York Times in 2009, she explained how her mother encouraged her to keep her story quiet and allow Rosa to be the one to be the public face of this movement. It had been decided by people higher than Claudette that Rosa Parks would have this distinction, in part, because she was lighter skinned than Claudette. I can only imagine her mother was trying to protect her from many evils. Today we honor, Claudette Colvin, and her melanin as part of !