Huntsville Revisited – Claudette Colvin
March 2, 1955: 15 year old Claudette Colvin refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama and was literally kicked off the bus by the arresting officer.This was 9 months before Rosa Parks was arrested. Montgomery’s black leaders did not publicize Colvin’s pioneering effort for long because she was a teenager and became pregnant while unmarried. Given the social norms of the time and her youth, the NAACP leaders worried about using her to represent the movement. NAACP organizers believed that Parks was the best candidate for seeing through a court challenge after her arrest on December 1, 1955 for civil disobedience in violating Alabama segregation laws.
Claudette, along with Aurelia Browder, Susie McDonald, and Mary Louise Smith, were arrested in Montgomery months before Parks.
These four women were the defendants in the federal court case, filed on February 1, 1956 as Browder v. Gayle, and testified before the three-judge panel that heard the case in the United States District Court. On June 13, 1956, the judges determined that the state and local laws requiring bus segregation in Alabama were unconstitutional. The case went to the United States Supreme Court, which upheld their ruling on December 17, 1956. Three days later, the Supreme Court issued an order to Montgomery and the state to end bus segregation in Alabama.
These four women were the defendants in the federal court case, filed on February 1, 1956 as Browder v. Gayle, and testified before the three-judge panel that heard the case in the United States District Court. On June 13, 1956, the judges determined that the state and local laws requiring bus segregation in Alabama were unconstitutional. The case went to the United States Supreme Court, which upheld their ruling on December 17, 1956. Three days later, the Supreme Court issued an order to Montgomery and the state to end bus segregation in Alabama.
As we recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of African-Americans this month, let us not forget these brave women. They should not be hidden figures.