Little Rock Central High School

Little Rock Central High School Soldiers and guardsmen escorted the Little Rock Nine for the entire school year. TOMANIO / UNIV. OF ARKANSAS LITTLE ROCK ARCHIVES nps; Life cover: © getty images / time & life pictures collection Students still attend Central High School, which is closed to park visitors except for organized tour groups. Year of Reckoning The school desegregation crisis at Little Rock Central High School put on trial America’s commitment to its founding principles. It was the first signi­ ficant test of the 1954 Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education that “separate educational facilities are inher­ ently unequal.” The successful outcome affirmed the basis of that ruling—the 14th Amend­ ment’s promise of “equal pro­ tection of the laws.” WILL COUNTS / COURTESY OF VIVIAN COUNTS AND INDIANA UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES Elizabeth Eckford walked a twoblock-long gauntlet of threats and racial slurs. Constitutional Struggle What became a defining moment in the South’s “massive resistance” to school deseg­ regation began quietly enough with a plan by Little Rock’s school board to gradually integrate the city’s schools. But Orval Faubus, the populist governor of Ark­ansas with a reputation for relative moderation on racial issues, undercut local officials. Race was playing an increasing role in Arkansas politics, and Faubus was looking ahead to running for reelection in 1958. His actions turned ordered desegregation into violent confrontation. Crying “states’ rights” and floating rumors about planned violence, Faubus justified calling out the National Guard to keep order—by blocking the entry of nine African American students. Faubus also cited concern for their safety, but before the eyes of guardsmen, mobs followed, spat on, and threatened violence to the students. Later, Governor Faubus after a court had ordered the National Guard withdrawn, and with only police to control the situation, an angry crowd beat both black and white journalists. President Eisenhower Spurred by other southern politi­ cians and his own constituents to take a stand against de­seg­ regation, Faubus insisted that in Brown v. Board the Supreme Court had overstepped its con­ stitutional authority. He invoked what he called constitutionally guar­an­teed states’ rights to back his use of the Na­tion­al Guard to bar African American students from Central High. By so doing he directly challenged the federal government. In the weeks before the students gained entry under the protection of U.S. Army troops, the governor’s defiance and legal maneuvering stoked a constitutional crisis. A growing media presence made this an ongoing news event played out on the country’s TV screens. But while Little Rock became the face of the nation’s desegregation troubles of the 1950s and 60s, the struggle for equal rights enacted there transcended region, race, and historical period. The struggle continues, and the commitment and courage shown by the Little Rock students is still needed if history is not to be repeated. ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS Although not an aggressive en­forcer of civil rights, Eisen­ hower believed deeply in the rule of law, the Constitution, and the appropriate use of military force. When Governor Faubus used armed guardsmen to defy a ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court, Eisenhower had no choice but to back constitutionally granted judicial and executive authority. He was the first president since Reconstruction to use federal troops to enforce civil rights. “The only assurance I can give you is that the Federal Constitution will be upheld by me by every legal means at my command.” —President Dwight Eisenhower, in telegram to Governor Faubus nps 1958 little rock, September 1957 ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site Arkansas ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE WILL COUNTS / COURTESY OF VIVIAN COUNTS AND INDIANA UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES WILL COUNTS / COURTESY OF VIVIAN COUNTS AND INDIANA UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES September 2 3 4 20 23 24 25 26 Governor Faubus orders National Guard to bar Afri­ can Americans from school for their “safety.” On first day of school mob gathers (above). Little Rock Nine do not appear. Guardsmen bar black students from entering school. Soon after Elizabeth Eckford is turned away (above) she is harassed by mob. Federal judge rules against use of Na­ tional Guard to block students. Little Rock police are given responsi­ bility for protecting the students. Little Rock Nine enter the school; police cannot main­ tain order. Riot ensues and the stu­ dents leave from a side entrance in a police car. President Eisen­ hower federalizes Arkansas National Guard and sends 1,200 soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division (above) to Little Rock. African American students enter Cen­ tral High escorted by soldiers (above). Faubus appears on television, saying “We are now an occupied territory.” 101st Air­­borne Division leaves in Nov­ember. Little Rock Nine endure physical and verbal abuse through­out the year. “If parents would just go home and let us alone, we’ll be all right . . . . We can do it.” 1959 ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE univ. of arkansas little rock archives May 25, 1958 1958 1959 Ernest Green (above) is the first African American to gradu­ ate from Central High School. Green says: “It’s been an interesting year. I’ve had a course in human relations first hand.” Faubus temporarily closes schools, giving voters a choice: ac­ cept integration or reject it (which they do, there­by closing schools for the 1958– 59 year). Sign erect­ ed by Little Rock citi­ zens is shown above. Federal court de­ clares closings un­ constitutional. Schools re­open in August. Three Afri­ can Americans at­ tend Central High School, including Jefferson Thomas and Carlotta Walls. —White female Central High student U. S . SC HOOL DESEG REG ATIO N 1849 Roberts v. The City of Boston 1881 Tuskegee Institute 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson 1909 Formation of NAACP 1936 Univ. of Mary- 1946 Mendez v. land v. Murray Westminster 1950 Sweatt v. Painter Supreme Court upholds segregated schools; provides precedent for Plessy v. Ferguson. Booker T. Washington founds school for African Americans. His emphasis on trades disturbs some African American leaders. Supreme Court establishes “separate but equal” doctrine. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) looks to courts to achieve equal rights. Maryland supreme court orders university’s law school to admit African American student. Supreme Court finds that “separate but equal” is unattainable in higher education. Ends segregation of Latino students in Orange County, Calif., schools. 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court overturns “separate but equal” doctrine. Brown II (1955) mandates—though ambigu­ously—deseg­ regation with “all deliberate speed.” 1960 Ruby Bridges 1972 Detroit Busing Plan Six-year-old African American girl desegregates New Orleans elementary school, escorted through mob by federal marshals. Busing plan is reversed in 1974 by Supreme Court (Millikin v. Bradley), affirming that courts could not remedy “white flight.” 1976 Boston AntiBusing Riots Residents of South Boston riot in response to court-ordered busing. TOMANIO I UNIV OF ARKANSAS LITTLE ROCK ARCHIVES WILL COUNTS I COURTESY OF VMAN COUNTS AND INDlANA UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES WILL COUNTS I COURTESY OF VMAN COUNTS AND lNDtANA UNIVERSfTY ARCHIVES A Clash of Viewpoints Some Little Rock citizens who ~~n opposed integration were ready to accept it to avoid disrupt~ \\ ing their children's education and damaging the city's reputation as progressive-and thus its business prospects. (To most African Americans the city was progressive only in the eyes of the whites and only in relation to more racially intolerant southern cities.) Others dug in their heels against change, and both sides began marshalling their forces. Opponents of desegregation formed the Capital Citizens Council and the Mothers' League of Central High School, circulating flyers (right) and petitioning the courts to delay desegregation and remove federal troops. After an African American student was expelled, a group of students distributed anti-integration cards reading "One Down ... Eight To Go." segregationist board members. They in turn organized the Committee to Retain Our Segregated Schools (CROSS) to block the recall. The recall effort was successful and most of the teachers were rehired. ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE CORBIS WILL COUNTS/ COURTESY OF VMAN COUNTS AND lNDlANA UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES TOMANIO I UNIV OF ARKANSAS LITTLE ROCK ARCHIVES The Eyes of the World • • • Women on the Front Lines The Little Rock crisis occurred in the infancy of TV and was among the first news stories filmed as events unfolded. The Magnolia Mobil service station near the school became an impromptu press base from which reporters called in their stories. Women and female students played a leading role in the crisis. The Mothers' League (right) became the face of segregation. The Council of Church Women protested when Governor Faubus used the National Guard to bar the nine students. When civic and business leaders failed to protest the school closings, the Women's Emergency Committee took a strong stand in favor of opening the schools under the school board's desegregation plan (flyer at right). One of the photographers on the scene was 26-year-old Will Counts. Working for the Little Rock Arkansas Gazette, Counts caught on film mobs screaming at Elizabeth Eckford and beating a black newsman (below). These powerful photographs helped spur President Eisenhower to act- partly because during the Cold War battle for the moral high ground the nation was embarrassed by scenes casting American society in a negative light. These now-iconic images were among those published in A Life ts More Than A Moment, Counts' moving visual essay on the events in Little Rock. The worldwide coverage, generating outrage at the violent denial of basic rights, became a model for the civil rights movement's use of the media over the next decade. Daisy L. Gatson Bates (center in photo below), president of the state chapter of the NAACP. pressed for immediate rather than V&r!' ~~Q:fl(ffl ~ d (!o~r ol{otn. W'JY,E;V When the divided school board fired 44 teachers and administrators suspected of supporting integration, the group Stop This Outrageous Purge (STOP), supported by the Women's Emergency Committee, demanded a special school board election to recall the LJoES ARKANSAs HISTORY COMMISSION gradual desegregation and during the crisis was spokesperson for the students. In response segregationists threw a rock through her window, fired shots at her home, and firebombed her lawn . ft'IAKE 0 GETTY IMAGES I TIME & LIFE PICTURES COLLECTION WILL COUNTS /COURTESY OF VMAN COUNTS ANO INDIANA UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES Any time it takes 11,500 soldiers to assure nine Negro children their constitutional rights in a democratic society, I can't be happy. -Daisy L. Gatson Bates al styles, was named by the American Institute of Architects "America's Most Beautiful High School." Central High was celebrated for its size (100 classrooms; capacity for more than 2,000 students; a huge auditorium and stage) and for its academic excellence. The From its dedication in 1927, Little Rock Senior High School (its name was changed to Little Rock Central High School in 1953) was recognized as more than a typical American school. The massive structure, a handsome blend of Art Deco and Gothic Reviv- Commemorative Garden Daisy L Gatson Bates Dr r·-·-·-·-·-· -·-· .... school also served as a civic center in Little Rock, hosting concerts, plays, and other events. It was a focus of community pride and a cultural symbol-perhaps one of the reasons so many fought so fiercely against change at the school. .- · 1 • Visitor Center ""'ro • "- r Directions From More Information open daily from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. It is open memorative Garden are 1-630 exit on Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive Little Rock Central High School year-round except accessible. With prior (Exit 28). Take a right National Historic Site Thanksgiving, December 25, and January 1. We suggest you start with the exhibits in the visitor center. Call ahead to arrange for group tours of park sites. notice, accessible group tours of Little Rock Central High school are avaiiable. The interpretive exhibits include several captioned audiovisual programs. Service animals are welcome. on Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive . Little Rock Central High School is at the intersection of Bates Drive and Park Street. Parking is available at the visitor center. 2120 Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive Little Rock, AR 72202 501-374-1957 www.nps.gov/chsc Visit www.nps.gov to learn more about your national parks. lllK-4/\1\.<1 O.S Km 0 @ 0.S Mi 0.1 Historic Mobil Station 3rd State +capitol North Education Center Quigley Stadium 15th St The Visitor Center is <D Exit 28 u Vl ''®ti11df& Ci Daisy L Gats: Z : : Or ."; <. . . . . ___--_;, Ol 0 National Historic Site boundary 100 Meters 200 ·-·-· ·c:c ~ c QJ 0 L. • Daisy L Gatson 8 ;;; .3 Wright Ave • Dunbar Middle School Exit 141A Q Exit 18 LITTLE ROCK .;, ates Dr ;:"'"" :;; £ 16th St 111 ,Ell St 0 c 16th St -·- 7th Ave Best Route Private property . fld Capitol O Exit 3A .!:: L. St ro@ Ca,,,~ 1J 17th 12"' "' St Exit 1398 O