Claudette Colvin, who helped spark the civil rights movement, dies at 86

Claudette Colvin died at 86, the Claudette Colvin Legacy Foundation said, confirming she died in Texas; her 1955 arrest at age 15 for refusing to give up a bus seat made her a named plaintiff in the case that ended Montgomery bus segregation.

Claudette Colvin has died at age 86, the Claudette Colvin Legacy Foundation announced. The foundation confirmed she died in Texas, according to Ashley D. Roseboro. Colvin's 1955 arrest in Montgomery followed her refusal to give up a seat on a segregated bus. At 15, she later became a named plaintiff in the legal challenge that helped end segregation on Montgomery's buses. Known details: - The Claudette Colvin Legacy Foundation announced her death and Ashley D. Roseboro confirmed she died in Texas. - Colvin was 86 at the time of her death. - She was arrested on March 2, 1955, after a bus driver called police because two Black girls were seated near two white girls; one of the Black girls moved back, and Colvin refused to move. - She was 15 years old when she was arrested. - Colvin became a named plaintiff in the landmark lawsuit that outlawed racial segregation on Montgomery buses. - Her arrest occurred months before Rosa Parks' more widely reported refusal to give up her seat. Summary: Her refusal to give up a bus seat and her role in the subsequent lawsuit were important elements in the movement to end legal segregation on Montgomery buses. Undetermined at this time.