Lucille Bridges is the mother of American civil rights activist Ruby Nell Bridges. Lucille’s daughter Ruby Bridges is also an author, speaker, and philanthropist. She became one of the first black children to integrate New Orleans’ all-white public school system. She has received several awards and honors. A statue of her stands in the courtyard of William Frantz Elementary School.
Lucille Bridges: Bio Summary
| Name | Lucille Bridges |
| Gender | Female |
| Famous as | mother of Ruby Bridges |
| Date of birth | 12 August 1934 |
| Birthplace | Tylertown, Walthall County, Mississippi, USA |
| Died | 10 November 2020 (aged 86) |
| Parents | Curtis Commadore and Amie Commadore |
| Spouse | Abon Bridges |
| Children | Ruby Bridges, Joana Bridges, Malcolm Bridges, Micheal Bridges |
Who Is Ruby Bridges’ Mother, Lucille?
Lucille Bridges is Ruby Bridges’ mother. She was born on 12 August 1934, in Tylertown, Walthall County, Mississippi, USA to Curtis Commadore and Amie Commadore. She was one of eight children born to her parents. She was raised in Tylertown, Mississippi, and grew up on the sharecropping farm her parents worked.
Lucille Bridges went to school but she stopped in 8th grade. She stopped school to help her parents in the fields. She met her future husband Abon Bridges who was a mechanic and a Korean War Veteran. They got married in the year 1953. Their first of five children, Ruby Nell Bridges was born on September 8, 1954, in Tylertown, Mississippi, U.S.
That same year, the Supreme Court ruled on the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education that “separate but equal” schools were unconstitutional per a source. Ruby would go on to become an Anti-Segregation Icon. Lucille Bridges and her family moved to New Orleans to find better employment and educational opportunities.
Lucille Bridges and her husband got to know about the NAACP which was encouraging Black parents to enroll their children in all-white schools. Segregation was illegal at this time but New Orleans remained a southern state which refused to recognize this. Lucille decided to be part of the first African American parents to enroll their child in an all-white school.
Also Read: Abon Bridges: What happened to Ruby Bridges’ father?
According to Lucille Bridges during an interview published in The Miami News on Nov. 24, 1960, she made sure Ruby got all the education she could and noted “Colored schools may be separate but they aren’t necessarily equal”. In 1960, Lucille escorted her then 6-year-old daughter Ruby through an angry white mob to school.
Ruby Bridges became the first Black student to attend an all-white school. Things were not that easy for Lucille and her family. They had to deal with threats of harm and racial hate. It got to a time when Lucille’s husband, Abon Bridges became unemployed. He lost his job as a gas station attendant. Her parents were also evicted from the farm they lived and worked on for years. Lucille and Abon reportedly separated.
However, Lucille Bridges didn’t give up. She remained persistent and determined, doing something that would ultimately open doors for so many people. “Brave, progressive, a champion for change,” Ruby Bridges wrote of her mother. “She helped alter the course of so many lives by setting me out on my path as a six year old little girl.”
What Happened To Ruby Bridges’ Mother?
Ruby Bridges’ mother, Lucille Bridges passed away on 10 November 2020, in New Orleans, Orleans Parish, Louisiana, USA, at age 86. She died at her home from cancer. She was buried at Tylertown Cemetery, in Tylertown, Walthall County, Mississippi, USA. Her daughter Ruby took to Instagram and wrote:
Today our country lost a hero. Brave, progressive, a champion for change. She helped alter the course of so many lives by setting me out on my path as a six year old little girl. Our nation lost a Mother of the Civil Rights Movement today. And I lost my mom. I love you and am grateful for you. May you Rest In Peace.
Lucille Bridges
(August 12, 1934 – November 10, 2020)
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell commented on Lucille Bridges’ passing and called her “one of the mothers of the Civil Rights Movement in New Orleans.”
Today we mourn the loss of one of the mothers of the Civil Rights Movement in New Orleans with the passing of Lucille Bridges — mother of five, including Ruby Bridges, who as a first-grader in 1960 was one of six black children to integrate the all-white William Frantz School. pic.twitter.com/AMvcxsWbJu
— Mayor LaToya Cantrell (@mayorcantrell) November 11, 2020
Also Read: Mary Lee Pfeiffer: What Happened To Tom Cruise’s Mother?
Lucille Bridges’ husband Abon Bridges died at age 47, on February 22, 1978, in New Orleans, Orleans Parish County, Louisiana. What killed him is still unknown.
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