Kelly Starling Lyons - She Persisted: Coretta Scott King

She Persisted: MARIAN ANDERSON

She Persisted: VIRGINIA APGAR

She Persisted: NELLIE BLY

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She Persisted: ROSALIND FRANKLIN

She Persisted: TEMPLE GRANDIN

She Persisted: FLORENCE GRIFFITH JOYNER

She Persisted: HELEN KELLER

She Persisted: CORETTA SCOTT KING

She Persisted: CLARA LEMLICH

She Persisted: MAYA LIN

She Persisted: WANGARI MAATHAI

She Persisted: WILMA MANKILLER

She Persisted: PATSY MINK

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She Persisted: DIANA TAURASI

She Persisted: HARRIET TUBMAN

She Persisted: OPRAH WINFREY

She Persisted: MALALA YOUSAFZAI

Named after her grandma Cora, Coretta Scott came into the world connected to a deep legacy of faith, bravery and belief in the importance of education. Everyone knew she was destined for something special. But no onenot even her parents or Coretta herselfcould imagine that one day her voice and strength would inspire people around the world.

Born on April 27, 1927, at home in Perry County, Alabama, Coretta was the child of Obadiah (Obie) Scott and Bernice McMurry Scott. They lived on family land in a house her father had built. Surrounded by the power of people who loved her, Coretta felt safe and protected. But outside the safety of their home, there were dangers everywhere.

In Alabama and throughout the South, segregationracist laws that separated Black and white peoplewas the rule. Being Black meant you had to drink from Colored water fountains, go through back doors of businesses and restaurants and only be served after whites were. You were called hateful names and faced the danger of being hurt or killed because of the color of your skin. The weight of oppression was as thick as summer Alabama air. But the Scotts surrounded their kids with the winds of possibility.

In their proud Black community with family all around, there was a history of land ownership, hard-won and passed on. The Scotts knew land was a complicated issue full of injustice. The forced removal of the Muscogee people from their homelands and the terrible institution of slavery built wealth for some people while keeping others down. Decades later, many families who lived near Corettas didnt own land and had little money. The unfairness broke Corettas heart.

But being with her family brought her joy. She dreamed and explored as she played with her big sister Edythe, little brother, Obie Leonard, and cousins. She climbed trees, swung on tire swings, and wrestled boys. She was imaginative and strongand proud of it.

We were much better off when we created our own games rather than things you buy from the store, she said.

Sometimes Coretta would gaze in the mirror and wonder what she would be one day. She believed that God put everyone on Earth for a reason. What was her purpose?

Coretta found direction and inspiration in her heroesher parents. Her mom had only finished fourth grade, and her dad one year of high school, but they were the smartest and most honorable people she knew. Her father owned his own truck and hauled lumber for a local sawmill company, and by making his own way in the world, he showed her what it meant to be independent and creative. Her mom, a seamstress and homemaker, instilled in Coretta and her siblings the value of faith, education, artistry and hard work.

Little Coretta helped her sister take care of the vegetables and feed the cows, chickens and hogs on their family farm. When she got older, Coretta and Edythe worked for a white farmer to help pay for their schooling. Unlike white students in their area, Black families had to pay for books. When the sun woke up, the Scott sisters started picking cotton with the heat beating on their backs. The days were long, tough and tiring. The sisters didnt finish until the sun went to bed. But Coretta put her all into it. She knew this work was a path to something more.