What do we have to do to make God love us?’ I always grew up with that. I always used to go around thinking that. ‘God loved the white people better. He must’ve. That’s why he made them white.’ Claudette Colvin Read Quote
When I got to 10th grade at Booker T. Washington High, I had a teacher, Miss Geraldine Nesbitt. I think she came from New York. She helped me begin to question things. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
We learned about people like Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Booker T. Washington and Marian Anderson. Harriet Tubman was my favorite. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
For African-Americans, it’s still going to be – some people say double hard – I’d say four times as hard. Be an opportunist. Take advantage of your resources, because the only way to win is with education, self-esteem, having value in yourself. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
I left the South in 1963 and was living in Morristown, New Jersey, when the March on Washington took place, so I watched it on television instead. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
I’d like my grandchildren to be able to see that their grandmother stood up for something, a long time ago. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
The light-skinned girls always thought they were better looking. So did the teachers, too. That meant most of the dark complexion ones didn’t like themselves. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
I wanted the young African-American girls also on the bus to know that they had a right to be there, because they had paid their fare just like the white passengers. Claudette Colvin Read Quote
