Fighting For Her Rightful Place in History: The Claudette Colvin Story

15-year-old Claudette Colvin refused to stand up for a white passenger in March of 1955. Nine months later seasoned civil rights advocate, Rosa Parks, also famously refused to give up her seat. Although both women were arrested and brought to trial it is Colvin’s case which not only reached the Supreme Court but changed the law and desegregated the buses. Despite the trial’s success, Ms. Colvin’s case was greatly overshadowed by Parks’ arrest. The stories of both women have been repeatedly misreported and after decades of erasure and no recognition Colvin share’s her story with 1010 Wins’ Larry Mulllins.
To sign the family’s petition to have Ms. Colvin properly credited in the National Museum of African American History and Culture please click here! www.change.org/p/smithsonian-...

[@margui6224]

I just learned about her story. I though Rosa Parks was the only one who refused to give up her seat. Claudette Colvin was first. Now they giving the recognize that she deserves.

[@aletia2005]

She and Rosa wasn’t #Margui622 americacomesalive.com/sarah-keys-evans-taking-a-stand-for-civil-rights/

[@mofodolo]

There was a woman before Her. But why is she so jealous of Rosa Parks? This wasn't her fault she was recognized for that event.

[@sandraatkins2539]

Other people also refused to give up their seat. That goes without saying. When it was decided that a Black person was going to represent Black America in that capacity, someone whose reputation was above reproach needed to be selected. The eyes of the world were on the Civil Rights Movement. Segregationists justified their discrimination by claiming, in part, that all people of African ancestry had low morals; therefore, they deserved to be placed [and remain] on the fringes of society. Nobody was going to select Claudette Colvin because of her immora'l lifestyle. The segregationists would have used her blemished reputation to justify their claim that 'all of them' are immoral just like we told you. You send your best to represent you, not those at the bottom of the barrel. That was, and remains, a cultural norm.

[@ezerlenewatkins9644]

​@@mofodoloI don't think she is jeolous.

[@VeronicaJohnson-yn1cr]

I never thought that Rosa Parks was THAT person...when got a look at Mrs Parks, I thought that she thought that she was too close to white to sit at the back of the bus.

[@bmaxine77]

Unfortunately a lot of black history is hidden but it is available to those who do plenty of research. History that is taught in schools is His-story or what is believed to be of more important to know. However, if you are interested in knowing more black history then it is up to you to find out.

[@Jay-ue2ic]

Yep. Don’t depend on schools to teach your children their history. There’s enough resources if you put in the effort.

[@dettashella]

After learning about this lady I can't look at rosa parks the same.

[@yolondatheodore7694]

It happened to Rosa too.

[@skyylea9859]

Claudette look real young for 80 ... wow

[@RunawayRoyalty]

If I saw a picture of her before I knew her age I would have Thought she was 40-50 tbh

[@erbodyluvschoc]

She's so cute and precious 😍 😍it's terrible that she was such a big part of history and she was left out. Just terrible 😞This was an awesome documentary

[@williehollie5019]

Elizabeth Jennings 1865 was the first to refuse to coply

[@Eyezpopmusic]

THANK YOU! If you reading this thank you if you know her and reading this tell her i said thank you so much! :-)

[@lady_duet]

I love the hair pin part of the story🤣 that’s right, stick it in his ear Ms. Claudette✊🏾 16:35

[@eleanorsmith9706]

I’m so glad I saw this video. Of course she should be included in black history in the US. This is a grave oversight in the formation of the Civil Rights movement. This could have been used and can still be used to help young people see that they can play a large part in bettering our society.

[@AprilCampbell]

I’m so happy to be affected by her story in such a way that compels me into motion and motivation to do better and be better.

[@fairisfair2986]

I hate that he cut her off im happy I found out why she sat there she was already on fire from black history month or week in her time and then boom you have history ! This is why learning is important ....

[@smayday1376]

God bless her🙏

[@peacheskong2245]

How come her story is so unknown... Like bruhhhhh

[@2.T00T]

Peaches Kong she wasn’t an eastern star like Rosa was.

[@nina5-12]

@@2.T00T I'm wondering the same. And why these stories can't be written by black authors? That's so weird to me.

[@Jay-ue2ic]

She was pregnant and 15. The NAACP didn’t think she was the right person to be the face of the movement. Parks was a lot older, a grown woman and the secretary of the local NAACP Branch. She wasn’t some nobody who just decided to stand up. It was an orchestrated effort and a very deliberate act of defiance. Colvin was just a regular Jane.

[@Jay-ue2ic]

sd&h 99 there’s literally a black journalist leading this discussion.

[@nina5-12]

@@Jay-ue2ic the book on her life story is literally written by a non black person.

[@lindahaynes8964]

I'm 71 now and I've known about this story since the early 60s Rosa Parks did not take away her place in history the people over looked her why I don't know maybe because she was a child still an her people and other African Americans did not want her to go to jail and be hurt or even worse killed talk with some of the older people at that time you'll find out the real story and she has a place in history because she took a stand at a time you could have been killed I feel it's time she get notice just like Ms Rosa Parks I know about you I see you and thank you an Rosa Parks for helping make African American History and life for us as a people better ✌🎗😇

[@maddamqueen110]

So glad i know her story

[@saundrabrown-um1xs]

Look at the most high God 🙌 God made sure that Ms. Claudette Colvin live her life to tell her history ❤

[@pearlbarkley1019]

It's about time. Well.. I have to remind people of the importance of the work of The Black Panther Party of Self Defense and The Nation of Islam at that time. Oh well... things like this do happen all the time. We must embrace our entire history... In ending... I love what Ms. Colbert said about history holding her down in that seat.. about Tubman about Truth... wonderful 😊😊😊❤❤❤

[@aletia2005]

#PearlBarkley americacomesalive.com/sarah-keys-evans-taking-a-stand-for-civil-rights/ she or Rosa wasn’t the first woman to give up there seat

[@pearlbarkley1019]

@@aletia2005 THANKS.I didn't know about this brave woman but I did know about Claudette Colvin. We have fought against INJUSTICE from day one!!!

[@wendyking5484]

Thanks Larry for bringing these details to our attention. You make 1010 wins, with your voice as well as the way you make the news thorough and interesting. I tune in for you. thanks.

[@yoso5934]

She’s so smart & good spirited👑🌹🤎

[@justterri443]

Much ❤ to MsClaudette❤❤❤❤

[@yoso5934]

The power of Black women 🤎🙏🏾✨

[@trevorcunningham8687]

The bus was called the special. The bus I took in The Bronx to 143 jhs was also called the special. And this was 1984-86!

[@kevinharris3993]

I found out about Ms. Colvin story today. Government needs to get it right and honor this woman. It was the Supreme Court decision which involved 4 women including Ms. Colvin that changes the laws, not the bus boycott

[@zayholloway6640]

I Hurd about her about the same time i learned of the civil rights movement as a whole my mother was a black history major in college

[@paigewhite1251]

They did that because she is too *dark* to be a "hero."

[@compassion2377]

Wow

[@anthonytaylor7928]

This movie need to be made or documentary or something

[@lolitaagatepfoy702]

It is good to know this side of the story.

[@MrDaRiAn21]

Why does the intro song still hold prevalence today 😢

[@saundrabrown-um1xs]

I remember hearing this truth 🙌👏🖤🤎✊

[@cherylbfuller2335]

I never knew about this lady. My question is why wasn't her story ever told. This lady's name should definitely be written in history. Not taking anything away from Rosa Parks but she is the original one and she should have never been overlooked. I don't blame her for fighting for her rightful place in history.

[@mindingmybusiness75]

This could be due to her color, and Rosa being a light skinned woman. Rosa being more of what the movement thought would be more easy on ones eye.

[@BlindFocus1]

At the time, Ms. Colvin was very young. At 15, it was decided that using her as the face of the movement was not the best move. She came from a working class (nearly impoverished) family, and her parents were not privy to their teenaged daughter being thrust into such a role. Remember, many Negroes were reluctant to get involved in the burgeoning movement out of fear that their white employers would find out and fire them. Mrs. Parks was older, educated, more economically stable (she worked as a seamstress), and already actively involved with the NAACP. It was also said that Ms. Colvin as a teenaged girl was a little sassy, which is normal for that age but still relative (this was in 1955, mind you), which could have been a deterrent for the NAACP to make her the face of the boycott. In other words, there were likely fears that she would not have known how to handle being thrust into the spotlight. Couple that with her age, and the fact that her parents were understandably not keen on their young daughter’s involvement, this was understandable. They needed a foolproof case. I am glad Ms. Colvin is still with us to recount her story. Bless her for her courage at such a young age.

[@VeronicaJohnson-yn1cr]

​@@mindingmybusiness75.. Exactly...Rosa was about 85% white.

[@ezerlenewatkins9644]

What about the 5th girl that was in the 16th street baptise churh bombing. It was 4 plus one. It was Addie's sister. She lived but she wad hurt very bad. Lost most of her sight and was hurt by flying glass. History does not reconize her either.

[@fairisfair2986]

Can we get a redo

[@rianaloveiam7429]

She’s so sweet

[@soulinkspeaks172]

I wonder if she wrote a memoir. I'd love to read it.

[@jimmyhendrixs2799]

😥

[@saundrabrown-um1xs]

Ms. Claudette Colvin is my shero. Ms. Claudette Colvin is the original Mother of Black Lives Matter 👏🖤🤎✊

[@lateface9715]

I'm bewildered. Online it says Claudette has only one sister named Velma Colvin, but this interview mentions Gloria Gadson Laster as Claudette's sister. Does she actually have a sister named Velma or is that fake? Also, may I add it says Velma died in 1992.

[@diviinityyyroblox656]

And one named Delphine.

[@valritz3100]

It's a real story it's our history....

[@rebeccacase6111]

@@valritz3100 what? I think they meant does she actually have a sister named Velma or was that false

[@karlalbright2733]

Colvin case went to the state Supreme Court while Parks went to the US Supreme Court in which the US Supreme Court used the lower court case to make the case for Parks, I don't believe Parks case would have gone to the US Supreme Court without the lowers courts case

[@annzeeg4217]

Truth is she wasn't the first and neither was Parks. Viola White and E.D. Nixon attempted this back in 1944 ten years earlier. This movement was underway long before Colvin was arrested.

[@donjazzy5510]

Exactly

[@ricardomurillo5205]

The 2 cops show up to put two thumbs down. Shame

[@darksidedemond2bean825]

How come she never mentioned Mary Louise Smith in those doors when she was telling it?

[@Anne.411]

Took long enough to find out about her. The heroes were all made up characters, placed in position for an agenda. The real ones have been erased from real history. They most likely ignored Claudettes case since she was just a unknown teenager who people could care less about. As you said the civil rights advocate, Rosa. She did it for an agenda and they probably got the idea from Claudette. The very fact they used to arrest BLACK TEENAGERS WITH NO PROBLEMS AND PEOPLE IGNORE THIS FACT IS DISGUSTING. MLK might as well been fighting to make sure the prison industrial complex stayed full of blacks, whether they were teenagers and kids. Go look back, the adults didnt participate because they knew better. So they were ok using the children in Birmingham for this civil rights shenanigans. They were the ones arrested because MLK had some dumb idea about overwhelming the system and they needed to get arrested. People really need to look into that guy.

[@billionairemindset7]

And honestly, she's not even the first. If you look at the interview of her best friend by the name of "Ms Margaret Burch", A lady by the name of "Ms Smith" did it before her. But all in all, I give flowers to all these women who had the courage💪

[@yolondatheodore7694]

I'm grateful she told her experience to us. I learned TODAY 2024. Her being realistic of possible grape was real. Many of ours indeed were sexually assaulted then and still now 2024. The older we get the more fearful we do seem to become. Claudette JoAnn Amelia Susy thanks u r appreciated ❤🎉❤. These pale females making money from written books have they financially compensated her for her experience, not theirs?.

[@anthonytaylor7928]

Wow all of the rosa parks signs every where

[@theopal2561]

this is a complex chain of events, so glad this has been revealed. unfortunately, perhaps some of the black leaders had mix's agendas as well, and started to cater their minds towards the "idiotic pandemonium" of the case system losing their way and the true meaning of equality. Not to discredit Rosa, but she was probably blinded eventually by fame : and couldn't critically think on how can I break the stereotype and the stigma place on those girls and her people in general.(Luke 23:34). “Then Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.’

[@simmiewilliams5970]

My parents told me Rosa wasn’t the first, but she was chosen to be the face of the movement. Optics.

[@Phoenixhunter157]

MLK jr knew about her. He could have said something to give her credit. It doesn’t takeaway all the good he did but it shows how political our heroes can be. Rosa was lighter skinned and more acceptable among whites and he helped push that agenda

[@saundrabrown-um1xs]

We need #SIDNEYHICKS the husband of Mo'Nique to direct the movie about the real mother of civil rights "The Bus Boycott"

[@Klassicvibes1979]

I would’ve been dead first sign of disrespect

[@billeejean7324]

Data and choose the woman because she was dark skin. The black man in the community or color is they have always been. They kept racism going in our community and benefited off of it.

[@skyylea9859]

I stopped liking Rosa when I read the truth .... I guess I feel deceived .... 🥺

[@pamelawherey4583]

Rosa should have spoke up. I couldn't go through the motions and keep up the lie knowing full well It all started with Claudette.

[@Jay-ue2ic]

You can like them both and understand that Parks was a better face of the movement.

[@morganthebabygenuis]

I have no regard for Parks the light skinned imposter.

[@anthonytaylor7928]

@@Jay-ue2ic how do u make that distinction did u know this women ?

[@savagetwin52]

What are you talking about. Read your history. Even Ms. Colvin was not the first to protest bus discrimination in the south Jo Ann Robinson Gibson many years before had tried. Rosa Parks was notthe first. But she started a movement with Ms Gibson and her organization. Just because YOU didn't realize the history doesn't mean you were deceived. You didn't know. Read about all the other women. Also Ms. Colvin was not the one to become the icon. The leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, NAACP and other groups had brilliant leaders and those who planned the path. So, be careful and do not dishonor Rosa Parks.

[@yankeeboi9778]

Why is it so hard to tell history, if its already written

[@mikiamartin1270]

. Am lear

[@tanyapeters5062]

what Chelsea was doing was trade lining this woman’s story since our people didn’t know it. I wish a author from our people would have done that and gave Claudette the royalty. But our Masters always want the credit first and make the profit off us while pretending to be our friend. How come Chelsea didn’t go see about her bald black brother that her father denies. Smh.

[@2KMMC2]

Well mrs.smith was the first so why would we name Colvin as the first … it’s obvious we don’t know who the first is Rosa parks was just the one who made it famous

[@VeronicaJohnson-yn1cr]

The black American race has always been Color Struck.....always.

[@jennaejones5285]

Well we all know it started in the cotton fields. Who was in the big house and who was in the fields.

[@mommie2raia]

Wa

[@lawanda2497]

Let me find out the NAACP pushed Rosa bcz of colorism… suspect. 🤔

[@yolondatheodore7694]

Have you seen the members of that organization 2024?.

[@lionessgoddess603]

The thing is, I think she should’ve brought this up along time ago because right now it doesn’t really matter does it because she will never get the place that Rosa Parks has is crazy to me how people always want recognition for everythinga as I don’t care how old she is let it go

[@blessedthanksgiving457]

Pregnant and not married, it's still Holy Bible.

[@fefelovejoy]

Guess you are not a student of the Holy Bible. Mary, the Mother of Jesus (Yeshua) was unmarried and pregnant…. This has nothing to do with the mark this dear woman made in history.

[@BBK-vu3cz]

rosa could pass as a white woman

[@yolondatheodore7694]

She looks like a light skinned female.