Dr. Gwendolyn Patton

Dr. Gwendolyn M. Patton has been a freedom fighter since birth.  In her own words:  "I was a Movement child and conscious since I was nine years old, in 1952, when I had my first conscious protest in Montgomery, Alabama. My grandmother’s rental property was the Freedom House for SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) organizers. In 1960, when I was 16, I wanted to go to Raleigh, North Carolina for the historic sit-ins, but I couldn’t. When I went to Tuskegee in 1961 as a student, the sit-ins occurred and SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) became a natural organization for me to join — unlike the preacher-dominated and male-controlled SCLC. In SNCC it was a natural peer relationship.

I was Student Body President at Tuskegee and helped establish a strong community relationship. We raised the term “relevance” in terms of education and inquiry."

Picture
Dr. Gwen Pattons Civic Makers interview for History Makers web.
Picture
Veterans of the Civil Rights Movement:  Dr. Gwendolyn M. Patton, a biography.
Picture
Dr. Gwendolyn Patton is the Library Archivist for the Trenholm State College, in Montgomery, Alabama.
Picture
"African Americans at the Crossroads:  The Restructuring of Black Leadership", a book by Clarence Lusane, features Dr. Gwen Patton's comments.
Picture
"Activists Recall Voting Rights Drive":  Dr. Gwendolyn Patton and others are interviewed on the National Public Radio program, "All Things Considered".
Picture
On the SOLIDARITY website's article "No Outside Saviors", Dr. Gwen Patton discusses her background in the Black Liberation Movement.