Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X. These are the names you think of when you hear the words “Civil Rights Activists.”

A name that you should add to that list is Sarah McCoy Abakwue. She is a civil rights activist who lived a carefree life, but still led a hard life of oppression because of who she is, just as many African-Americans back then because of the color of their skin.

McCoy is the first African American graduate of ULM.

To celebrate Black History Month, arrived at ULM in a blue dress similar to that of those worn in the African culture.

Her speech was unscripted. She believed it was the Holy Spirit that guided her speech and it visibly moved the crowd that came to see her Thursday.

McCoy is proud of who she is and describes herself as “not nonviolent person” when it came to how she believed things needed to be dealt with.

“When I was a child, I would stand in the sun all day to change my color. I wanted to be black. I wanted to be black,” McCoy said in her speech.

McCoy, though retired, still is an activist both in body and spirit. She will drop everything she is doing if there is a rally, conference or speech that she needs to attend.

Betty Cooper, co-advisor for the NAACP, attended at her speech along with a number of university students.

“The students appreciated the stories Dr. McCoy shared. The students were eager to take a group photo and an individual photo with her. They will consider it as a cherished memory,” Cooper said.