Ada Stukes Adderley Reflects on Her Parents & Siblings Who Sued for Equality, and Her Pride That ‘My Family Was Involved in Such an Adventure’

Ada Stukes Adderley is the daughter of William “Bo” and Gardenia Stukes, and sister of Will Stukes Jr., Denia Stukes and Louis Stukes, all of whom were plaintiffs in South Carolina’s Briggs v. Elliott case that was later consolidated as part of the Brown v. Board Supreme Court case.

In this oral history, Adderley remembers the events surrounding how her siblings and parents became involved in the landmark case.

In 1951, Adderley’s mother moved the children to Philadelphia to unite with family. Adderley eventually attended Temple University. In 1986, Adderley joined the school district of Philadelphia in special education, as well as the Creative and Performing Arts School of Philadelphia. She retired from the Philadelphia School District in 2011.

Learn more about the Stukes family and the five cases that were ultimately merged into Brown v. Board and see more testimonials from the families who changed America’s schools at our new site: The74Million.org/Brown65.

Disclosure: The Walton Family Foundation provides financial support to The 74 and funded The Brown Foundation for Educational Equity, Excellence and Research in producing the new book Recovering Untold Stories: An Enduring Legacy of the Brown v. Board of Education Decision.