Claudette Colvin was a civil rights activist at the young age of 15. She was arrested for not giving her seat up for a white passenger. Colvin isn’t as well known as Rosa Parks even though she was one of Rosa Parks’ inspirations, performing the same protest almost nine months before Parks. Now an 81-year-old retiree, Colvin lives in the Bronx.

Claudette Colvin was born on September 5, 1939, in Montgomery, Alabama. She grew up in one of the poorest neighborhoods in her city, and this drove her to work hard, so one day, she could have a better life. Colvin was a bright young girl. She studied hard and earned mostly A’s in all of her classes. She aspired to be president when she grew up. She had short, wavy black hair and black glasses. She generally dressed simply and was often seen wearing wool sweaters. She was intelligent, hard-working, brave, and determined. She wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she believed in, and this was what made her such a brilliant activist. 

On March 2, 1955, Colvin was riding the bus home from school. She had worked very hard that day and was extremely exhausted. Poor Claudette almost collapsed in an empty seat as she entered the bus. She sunk into her seat, relaxing for the ride home. However, her relaxation was cut short when white passengers boarded the bus.  Three of her classmates got up but Colvin didn't budge, informing the two officers who soon boarded that she knew her constitutional rights. Because of this, she was arrested. 

For several hours, she sat in jail, completely terrified. "I was really afraid because you just didn't know what white people might do at that time," Colvin later said. After her minister paid her bail, she went home where she and her family stayed up all night out of concern for possible retaliation. Civil Rights leaders considered using Colvin’s case to start another protest to end segregation but decided not to, as she was only fifteen. Colvin also became pregnant and they decided that they didn’t want that to distract people from the real issue. 

Colvin’s son, Raymond, was born the following year. Colvin grew up to become a nurse. She worked at a hospital in Manhattan for thirty-five years before she retired in 2004. 

But why isn’t Claudette Colvin as famous as Rosa Parks? Civil Rights protest leaders wanted their protests to be as ‘appealing’. According to them, Colvin didn’t have ‘good hair and wasn’t as ‘fair skinned’ as Rosa Parks. Because of the small details in her appearance, Colvin didn’t get the recognition she deserved. The protests weren’t about how glamorous the people looked while doing it, they were about fighting for what was right. That’s exactly what Claudette Colvin did, and to me, that is the only thing that matters. 

WORKS CITED

Ott, Tim/ Biography.com, “Claudette Colvin Refused to Give Up Her Bus Seat Nine Months Before Rosa Parks,” biography.com/news/claudette-colvin-rosa-parks-bus-boycott (Feb. 24, 2021)

Editors, Biography.com/Biography.com. “Claudette Colvin Biography,”biography.com/activist/claudette-colvin (Feb. 25, 2021)

Adler, Margotr/npr.org, “Before Rosa Parks, There was Claudette Colvin,”npr.org/2009/03/15/101719889/before-rosa-parks-there-was-claudette-colvin (Feb.26, 2021)