James Orange - Personal Life

Personal Life

Orange was born in Birmingham, Alabama, but moved to Atlanta, Georgia in the early 1960s. Orange, at over 6'3" tall and over 300 pounds, was physically impressive but deeply committed to non-violence. In his attempts to convert gang members in Chicago to adopt non-violent principles, he endured nine beatings without resistance. He was also known for preaching and singing in a strong baritone voice.

Orange had a large family, several of whom were active in the civil rights movement. He was the third of his parents' seven children. His father worked in the large ACIPCO foundry in Birmingham, but was fired in 1957 for union activity. Orange's mother was very active in the civil rights movement and also attended the Monday night mass meetings at the Sixteenth Street church. Still, he told an interviewer on January 15, 2000, "I was afraid to go home and tell my mamma that her daughters, one 17 and the other 14, were in jail. But that's the way it was in those days, as we waged — and won — a non-violent campaign against police clubs and police dogs."

At the time of his death in February, 2008, at Atlanta's Crawford Long Hospital, Orange was recovering from gallbladder surgery. Orange had had a triple heart bypass operation about six years before his death, and his health had declined over the years, despite his robust physique.

Orange's wife of 39 years, Cleophas, known as Cleo, survived him, as did three daughters and a son. His youngest daughter, Pamela Aquica Orange, died on March 11, 2007. His daughter Jamida Orange spoke to the press on behalf of the family at the time of his death.