Foster, first Black student at University of Alabama, dies

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

Autherine Lucy Foster, the first Black student to enroll at the University of Alabama, died Wednesday. She was 92.

University officials announced her death in a statement. Her daughter, Angela Foster Dickerson, said her mother died Wednesday morning and said a family statement would be released.

Foster in 1956 briefly attended classes at the then all-white university. She was expelled three days later after her presence brought protests and threats against her life. Foster, a graduate student studying education, had faced hostile crowds hurling racially charged threats and debris.

The university later celebrated Foster’s legacy, her role in desegregating the institution and her bravery.



FILE - Autherine Lucy Foster reacts during the dedication ceremony for Autherine Lucy Foster Hall in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. Angela Foster Dickerson, Foster's daughter, says her mother died Wednesday, March 2, 2022 and said a family statement would be released. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Tuscaloosa News via AP, File)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/education-alabama-race-and-ethnicity-university-of-alabama-12516189031846fa4778104ac5446583

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. But she just ... NT

[BumRushDaShow]

2. R.I.P.

To a brave woman with conviction and willing to be the test. Am glad she got live to see the changes. She was the same age as my mother would have been this year.

Here she was back in 1956 (from here - https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2022/03/02/alabama-student-autherine-lucy-foster-dead/)


Autherine Lucy Foster, center, discusses her return to the University of Alabama following mob demonstrations in 1956. (Gene Herrick/AP)

And in 2019 when she received an Honorary Doctorate from UA -


Ms. Foster was presented an honorary doctorate from the University of Alabama in 2019. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Tuscaloosa News via AP)

And just a week ago with the ribbon-cutting for the Hall named for her -


Ms. Foster lifts the scissors in celebration after cutting the ribbon during a renaming ceremony for Autherine Lucy Hall on Feb. 25. (Gary Cosby Jr./The Tuscaloosa News via AP)

Article here - https://www.al.com/news/2022/02/autherine-lucy-building-dedicated-at-university-of-alabama-after-removal-of-klansman-name.html


The newly renamed Autherine Lucy Hall on the University of Alabama campus on Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. The UA System’s Board of Trustees initially wanted to add Autherine Lucy Foster's name to a building previously named for Bibb Graves, a former governor of Alabama and a Ku Klux Klan member, but outcry from students and faculty and press attention forced the board to withdraw a recommendation for Lucy-Graves Hall. (Ben Flanagan / AL.com)

Condolences to her family and thank you dear lady for your sacrifices.

[Achilleaze]

3. .

[Hekate]

4. Pete Seeger honored her early on...

[Hekate]

5. In 1956 I was just a little California kid & didn't know her name, but we had this record album...

…later, and I remember all the songs. I never knew who “Autherine” was about, but the line about how “old Jim Crow was knocked back by one slip of a girl” — well, there were high school girls and elementary school girls who were bravely involved in desegregation, too.

Now, at very long last, I get to learn who she is and what she did. What a wonderfully brave woman. Thank you for the post, Steve.