 Lucille Bridges, one of the mothers of the Civil Rights movement in the South, passed away on November 10, 2020 at the age of 86. Lucille was an unassuming trailblazer whose quiet courage in facing protests against the desegregation of New Orleans Schools in 1960, resulted in a change for many black students across the South. In 2016 the Altharetta Yeargin Art Museum housed The Power of Children, a national touring exhibit that explored the lives of three young people and the impact they made on the world we live in today. While it was the Ruby Bridges story that was told in this exhibit, her mother Lucille was the driving force behind her integration into the all-white school. The AYAM was honored to host several talks by Lucille Bridges as part of the exhibit thus introducing to the community this Civil Rights icon who was a true champion for change. Each time she told her story the community had a deeper understanding of the battle that was fought in the South and the long-lasting effects felt today. The hardships she endured and the racism she and her family encountered did not deter her mission to provide her children with a good education and a better life for them than she had herself. She continued her mission throughout her life, encouraging all students to stay in school, study hard and get a good education. Her grace, along with her determination, have been an inspiration to decades of young black people and their families searching for a better life through education. Ultimately, she paved the way for many and she lived to vote for Barack Obama, first black President of the United States and had the ability to understand that there would be a black woman as Vice President. Who could have imagined such a life.
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