Ruby Doris Smith-Robinson
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| Ruby Doris Smith-Robinson | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: | April 25, 1942 |
| Place of birth: | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Date of death: | October 9, 1967 (aged 25) |
| Movement: | African-American Civil Rights Movement |
| Major organizations: | Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee |
Ruby Doris Smith-Robinson worked with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) from its earliest days in 1960 until her death in October 1967. She served the organization as an activist in the field and as an administrator in the Atlanta central office. She eventually succeeded James Forman as SNCC's executive secretary and was the only woman ever to serve in this capacity. She was well respected by her SNCC colleagues and others within the movement for her work ethic and dedication to those around her. SNCC freedom singer Matthew Jones recalled, "You could feel her power in SNCC on a daily basis" (Jones 1989). Jack Minnis, director of SNCC's opposition research unit, insisted that people could not fool her. Minnis was convinced that she had a "100 percent effective shit detector" (Minnis 1990).
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Early life
This hard-nosed administrator and legendary activist was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on April 25, 1942, and she spent her childhood in Atlanta's Black Summerhill neighborhood. She was the second oldest of seven children born to Alice and J. T. Smith. The Smith children lived a comfortable existence in their separate Black world. They had strong adult support, and they had their own churches, schools, and social activities. No matter how insulated they were, however, the reality of American racism and segregation intruded from time to time. Smith-Robinson recalled her feelings about segregation in those early years.
"I was conscious of my Blackness. Every young Negro growing up in the South has thoughts about the racial situation." She also remembered her reaction to the white people she came in contact with when she was a youngster. "I didn't recognize their existence, and they didn't recognize mine . . . . My only involvement was in throwing rocks at them" (Garland 1966).
[edit] SNCC
In this atmosphere, young Ruby, like many young Black Americans of her generation, became convinced that change was possible. When Ruby Smith entered Spelman College, she quickly became involved in the Atlanta student movement. She regularly picketed and protested with her colleagues in a bid to integrate Atlanta.
By February 1961 she had become involved in the national movement and joined activities sponsored by the fledgling SNCC. The next year, Smith left her position as executive secretary of the Atlanta student movement to become the full-time southern campus coordinator for SNCC. A bold and daring colleague, she was the originator of SNCC's "jail, no bail policy" and one of the original Freedom Riders.
By 1963, she had become SNCC's administrative secretary and a full-time member of the central office staff. Then, in 1966, she was elected to the post of executive secretary. A forceful administrator, Smith-Robinson was responsible for providing logistics and support for the many community organizing initiatives SNCC began in the south and north during the group's Black Power campaign.
Ruby Doris Smith-Robinson soon became a legend within SNCC with most early SNCC members being able to recount at least one Ruby Smith-Robinson story. Julian Bond remembered that when a delegation of SNCC staff was preparing to board a plane for Africa in the fall of 1964, an airline representative told them the plane was overbooked and asked if they would wait and take a later flight. This angered Ruby Smith-Robinson so much that without consulting the rest of the group she went and sat down in the jetway and refused to move. They were given seats on that flight. The innovative and determined spirit displayed in her activism was also part of her administrative demeanor.
In 1964, while still devoting much of her time to SNCC, she married Clifford Robinson and son, Kenneth Toure Robinson, in 1965. During the same period, she also graduated from Spelman with a Bachelor's degree in physical education.
[edit] Death
By January 1967, however, her health began to decline precipitously. At that time she was admitted to a hospital. In April of that year she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. She died on October 9, 1967.
[edit] References
- http://www.stanford.edu/group/King/chronology/details/660616.htm
- Garland, Phyl. "Builders of a New South," Ebony (August 1966)
- Jones, Matthew. Personal interview (April 24, 1989)
- Minnis, Jack. Personal interview (November 4, 1990).
[edit] See also
- http://liberationcommunity.stanford.edu/clayarticles/black_women_3.htm
- http://www.crmvet.org/info/rockhill.htm
- Fleming, Cynthia. Soon We Will Not Cry: The Liberation of Ruby Doris Smith Robinson Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 1998. 228 pages. ISBN 084-768971-9
