Clarence Rufus J. Rivers was a person, just like you or me! He was a very special person though, because he did a lot of great things for his community. People who do great things for their communities are called leaders.
Clarence Rufus J. Rivers was a leader for African American people. Do you know what African American means? It means a person who has dark skin and has ancestors from Africa. There was a time when African American people were treated unfairly and were not allowed to do some of the things that other people could do, like go to certain schools or sit in certain parts of a bus.
But Clarence Rufus J. Rivers wanted to change that. He wanted African American people to have the same opportunities as everyone else. He worked really hard to make that happen. He talked to lots of people and wrote letters and made speeches to try to make things better.
One of the things he did was start a program to help young African American people learn how to read and write better. This was really important because if you can read and write, you can learn about lots of things and be successful in life.
Clarence Rufus J. Rivers also wanted to make sure that African American people had a say in their government. Do you know what government is? It's the people who make rules and laws in a city or a country. So he helped African American people get a chance to vote, which means they could choose who they wanted to be in charge and make decisions for their community.
All in all, Clarence Rufus J. Rivers was a really great person who did a lot of good things for his community. He wanted everyone to be treated equally and to have the same opportunities to succeed. That's why he was and still is very important to many people.