Talmadge Rutledge (1929 – April 16, 2020) was an American civil rights activist who lived in

Clearwater, Florida Clearwater is a city and the county seat of Pinellas County, Florida, United States, west of Tampa, Florida, Tampa and north of St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies T ...

. He was the first president of the NAACP's Clearwater branch. His brother Charles was also a businessman and was a party to the lawsuit that precipitated the desegregation of

Pinellas County Schools Pinellas County Schools is the public school district serving Pinellas County, Florida. The district is based in Largo. With over 104,000 students served in more than 140 schools and centers, the district is the 7th-largest in Florida and 26th- ...

. At one point he found three bullet holes in his home. He owned a laundromat and dry cleaning establishment. In 1968, he was convicted and fined $35 for obstructing a school bus during a desegregation demonstration. The national president of the NAACP,

Kivie Kaplan Kivie Kaplan (April 1, 1904 – May 5, 1975) was an Americans, American businessman and philanthropist. He served as president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) from 1966 until his death. Early life and edu ...

, attended the trial. Municipal Court judge Roland Fox presided. He opposed the closing of a community center named for

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

in the North Greenwood section of Clearwater.

References

1929 births 2020 deaths Activists for African-American civil rights American human rights activists {{DEFAULTSORT:Rutledge, Tal