Remembering Ameila Boynton Robinson
[gtxvideo vid=”zsS3Sm0l” playlist=”” pid=”XiOflQdH” thumb=”http://player.gtxcel.com/thumbs/zsS3Sm0l.jpg” vtitle=”Memorial for Amelia Boynton Robinson in Tuskegee”]
Dr. Amelia Boynton Robinson had many passions in her life, such as her love of music and children. She is most remembered for her work during the Civil Rights Movement.
Her son, Attorney Bruce Boynton, said she would be proud if people today would, “[c]ontinue, to do the work that she did. Continue to fight for equality, for democracy, and for civil rights.”
Reverend Dr. Bernard Lafayette delivered the eulogy at the memorial service. He remembers Ameila fondly, saying “Mrs. Boynton in addition to being a committed Christian, was a committed activist because she believed that you had to be practical, that you couldn’t just wish for change to come. You had to participate in making it happen.”
Close family friend Joe Jonas remembers her being a kind, loving and and somewhat stern character.
“She was a nice person,” Jonas recalls. “A mother figure. And she always liked young people. And she always said thrive, get your education. Because once you get your education, they can’t take it from you, you know?”
Jonas is the young man holding Amelia in the iconic “Bloody Sunday” picture that was shown time and time again throughout the civil rights movement. Decades later on another Sunday, everyone gathered in the chapel came to celebrate Amelia’s life. No one referred to the event as a funeral, but as a time to remember the amazing work Amelia did and what her legacy will continue to do.
There will be a bridge crossing ceremony on Tuesday for Ameila in Selma at the Edmund Pettis Bridge.
