Joanne Bland, an American civil rights activist, died on February 19, 2026.
Born Jo Ann Blackmon in Selma, Alabama, on July 29, 1953, Bland was a highly active participant in the Civil Rights Movement from her earliest days. She was the youngest person to have been jailed during any civil rights demonstration during that period.
Bland began her activism in 1961, attending a freedom and voters’ rights meeting presided over by Martin Luther King Jr. She died in Selma at the age of 72.
Joanne Blackmon Bland (sometimes spelled Jo Ann; July 29, 1953 – February 19, 2026) was an American civil rights activist. Bland was a highly active participant in the Civil Rights Movement from her earliest days, and was the youngest person to have been jailed during any civil rights demonstration during that period.