Autherine Lucy Foster, the University of Alabama’s first Black student, has died.
She was in Tuscaloosa just last week to cut the ribbon on the newly-named College of Education building, where she once sheltered from a racist mob. The building, previously known as Bibb Graves Hall, is now called Autherine Lucy Hall.
Read more: University of Alabama reverses course, to remove Klansman name from building after outcry.
“For you to bring me out today, the Lord must be on each of our sides,” she said Friday, before quoting both Psalm 23 and Ralph Waldo Emerson. “If I am a master teacher, what I hope I am teaching you is that love will take care of everything in our world.”
Lucy Foster was 92 years old. She lived in Bessemer.
Her family confirmed the death to AL.com Wednesday afternoon and said they’re requesting privacy during this challenging time.
“She was known, honored and respected around the world after she broke the color barrier at the University of Alabama,” her daughter Chrystal Foster said in a statement. “She passed away at home, surrounded by family. We are deeply saddened, yet we realize she left a proud legacy.”
“The UA community is deeply saddened by the passing of our friend, Dr. Autherine Lucy Foster,” said University of Alabama President Stuart R. Bell Wednesday morning.
“While we mourn the loss of a legend who embodied love, integrity and a spirit of determination, we are comforted by knowing her legacy will continue at The University of Alabama and beyond. We were privileged to dedicate Autherine Lucy Hall in her honor just last week and to hear her words of encouragement for our students. 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.”
In 1956, Lucy Foster attended classes in the education building, formerly named for a former governor and Ku Klux Klan leader Bibb Graves. Lucy Foster was a graduate of Miles College, hoping to earn her master’s degree in education two years after a federal court ruled segregation illegal in public institutions.
Lucy Foster spent her first week of classes sheltering in the annex of the building to protect herself from violent white mobs, while she waited to be escorted, face-down in a patrol car, to the safety of a West Tuscaloosa barber shop. University officials expelled her for her safety just three days after she enrolled.
Lucy Foster returned to the University of Alabama in 1991, three decades after she was forced to leave campus, to earn her master’s degree in elementary education. At the request of campus activists and professors, the university eventually posted a historic marker in front of the education building in 2017 to highlight her importance to UA’s history. In 2019, the university awarded her an honorary doctoral degree.
Early last month, the university’s board of trustees voted to place Lucy Foster’s name beside Graves’ on the education building, but the effort was met with backlash from students, faculty and community members. The board later reversed course, renaming the building Autherine Lucy Hall on Feb. 11.
The Alabama Democratic Party offered condolences to Lucy Foster’s family and friends Wednesday morning.
“Autherine Lucy Foster was the embodiment of courage,” said Rep. Chris England, D-Tuscaloosa, who chairs the organization. “As the first Black student to attend the University of Alabama, her trailblazing determination paved the way for a more inclusive and equitable higher education system in Alabama. Her life was a testament to the power of compassion and grace in the face of unyielding adversity. We are all made better by her example.”
Other campus trailblazers also remembered Lucy Foster’s legacy on Wednesday. UA Vice President for Community Affairs Samory Pruitt, who became the university’s first Black vice president in 2004, said she continually inspired him with her “humble, caring, visionary and courageous spirit.”
“It was so fitting that her remarks during the dedication about being a master teacher [were about] teaching all of us to love one another, because that is what she always wanted,” he said.