Not Normal

Claudette Colvin passed away last month. With her passing, we lost another civil rights icon. At the age of 15, Ms. Colvin, who was Black, refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus for a white passenger. This was before Rosa Parks did the same and when Dr. King, Jr. was a new pastor at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery. He had not yet begun his organizing. 

Ms. Colvin was arrested and - at 15 - charged with violating segregation laws, disturbing the peace and assault on an officer because she allegedly resisted arrest (she denied this charge). That last charge was classified as a felony. Although her segregation convictions were overturned on appeal, her record wasn’t expunged until 2021. Yes, you read that right - 2021. 

“I knew then and I know now that, when it comes to justice, there is no easy way to get it. You can't sugarcoat it. You have to take a stand and say, ‘This is not right.’”

—Claudette Colvin

Ms. Colvin chose that moment on the bus to take a stand. She knew what to do because the Montgomery NAACP Youth Council, led by Rosa Parks, had taught her how to challenge Jim Crow injustices (for more, see the Equal Justice Initiative). 

I’ve been thinking a lot about Ms. Colvin as I watch the daily horrors we are facing. 

Like me, you may be feeling:

Rage

Despair

Numb

Horror

Anguish

Disbelief

Like you cannot process 

Overwhelm

Exhaustion

On repeat.

This means you are a normally functioning human being responding to completely abnormal circumstances. It means your heart works. 

So, what do we do with all of these feelings?

First, you do not have to push through this or pretend to be strong or still able to focus on anything. Give yourself time and space to process. Try not to normalize it by thinking you can go about your life as if we were not living in 1984, or Andor, or Hungary. 

Second, let your emotions move through your body. They will bubble up and settle down and bubble up again. Let them. 

Third, taking care of yourself right now is essential, not optional. Do not let them burn you out; we need your light because we are in this for the long term.

Fourth, remember that you have power and agency. And those who think they have power are actually very scared of your power. As Claudette Colvin said, “You have to take a stand and say this is not right.” Decide whether this is your moment to say this is not right; this must stop. And then decide how you want to engage. 

Please prioritize caring for yourself and your soul in these very not normal times.