March 24, 2020
Darius and Vera Swann were looking for a racially integrated school in a time of mandated segregation. They wanted, expected, a good education for their son James. Their efforts on his behalf in 1964 placed them in the crosshairs of United States history and upended Charlotte’s trajectory as a New South city.
The struggle for good educational outcomes spearheaded by this family on behalf of all children continues to this day.
The Rev. Darius L. Swann died March 8, 2020 in Centreville, Va. Vera Swann and other family members survive him. A Washington Post obituary is here and below. The Charlotte Observer obituary is here.