Ruby Bridges Day 2023

Celebrate Ruby Bridges Day 2023 with Safe Routes to Schools Marin on November 15.

On November 15, students at 40 Marin elementary schools will Walk and Roll for Ruby Bridges.  For the first time, Safe Routes to Schools is rolling out Ruby Bridgfes walk and Roll to School Day countywide! All 42 subscribing elementary schools are encouraged to walk and roll for Ruby Bridges, who as a six year old African American in Louisiana in the 1950s, was assigned to attend an all-white school. She endured verbal abuse from bystanders during her daily walk to class, and most of her white classmates were pulled out of school after she started attending. Ruby and her parents persevered, and over time, the school was successfully desegregated. Now Ruby is a teacher dedicated to inspiring others.

Walk and Roll for Ruby teaches children to take courageous actions in her name, such as walking and rolling to school when it’s not easy or convenient.  Ruby Bridges Day is also an important opportunity to make connections between transportation and racial justice in our work. It’s a day to selflessly leave the car at home so our streets are safer for those who do not have any other option than to walk or bike. And it’s a day to think about how providing affordable housing and safe, accessible mobility options helps to end the cycle of poverty and improves our communities.

Bike or walk with us on November 15th. Commemorate Ruby Bridges Day 2023 and the courageous steps made so far, while acknowledging the long path still to be traveled to make safe streets, spaces, and travel equitable for all.  

Last year, Bayside Martin Luther King, Jr. Academy in Sausalito celebrated the achievements of Ruby Bridges by walking to campus. “Eight students from our middle school traveled to our elementary school to host the event. Heavy rain occurred on that day so we could not hold the session outdoors, but our students walked from classroom to classroom, promoting Ruby’s story and the Safe Routes mission,” said Phillip Logan, Community School Director with the Sausalito-Marin City School District.

According to AAA, last year 343,000 students from 1,400 schools around the United States took part in Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day. Ready more about Ruby Bridges Day 2023 in the Safe Routes to Schools fall newsletter. 

We can’t wait to see you walking and rolling to school on November 15 in honor of Ruby Bridges Day 2023.