Autherine Lucy Foster, First Black Student at U. of Alabama, Dies at 92
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.
Her death comes less than a week after university officials dedicated the campus building where she briefly attended classes in her honor. During the ceremony, she was also proclaimed a “master teacher.”
“If I am a master teacher, what I hope I am teaching you is that love will take care of everything in our world, don’t you think,” Foster said at the dedication ceremony last week.
“Dr. Foster will always be remembered as one who broke barriers, reminded us of the respect due to every individual and lived a life of strength in steadfast service to her students and community,” University President Stuart R. Bell said in a statement.
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