Running head: LITTLE ROCK NINE

The Little Rock Nine: The Crisis That Shaped a Nation
Angela Manjarrez
Point Loma Nazarene University

Abstract The Little Rock Nine were nine African American students from Little Rock, Arkansas who enrolled at Central High School. No African American student was allowed to enroll in an all White school, until the Supreme Court passed a ruling in which schools would be integrated. It was a trying time for these nine students as they suffered through violence, hate, segregation, humiliation, and fear. Little did they know that their actions during the 1957-1958 school year would mark an important event that changed history forever. They endured massive amounts of pain during their ordeal of mainly trying to get an education. But they received help and support along the way. The Little Rock Nine shaped the educational systems and gave hope to a divided nation at the time. They would grow to be successful individuals and remembered as unsung heroes in Civil Rights history.

The Little Rock Nine: The Crisis That Shaped a Nation In 1957, nine ordinary teenagers walked out of their homes and stepped up to the front lines in the battle for civil rights. The “Little Rock Nine” or the “Little Rock Crisis” refers to a time in history in which nine African American students were prevented from attending Little Rock Central High School, located in the southern state of Arkansas. This also took place during the Civil Rights Movement. The Little Rock Nine were the first African American students to desegregate Little Rock Central High School. The nine students were: Minnijean Brown Trickey, Elizabeth Eckford, Ernest Green, Thelma Mothershed Wair, Melba Patillo Beals, Carlotta Walls LaNier, Terrance Roberts, Jefferson Thomas, and Gloria Ray Karlmark. These nine students would be honored later in history for their tremendous courage and bravery in their quest for equality, not only for themselves but for all Americans.
Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education The U.S. Supreme Court issued its historic Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka on May 17, 1954. The decision declared that all segregated schools were considered unconstitutional and called for the integration of all schools throughout the nation. After the decision was made, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) attempted to register black students into the all white schools of that time. Registration was attempted in the South. Arkansas was one of two Southern states to announce that it would immediately take in effect the new “law of the land”. On May 24, 1955, Virgil Blossom, the Superintendent of Schools in Little Rock, presented a plan to the school board to integrate the schools gradually. The board unanimously approved Virgil’s plan. Little Rock felt it could break down the barriers of segregation in its schools with a steady and gradual program. After all, it had already desegregated its public transportation system, as well as its zoo, libraries and park systems. The plan called for the desegregation in the high schools in 1957, which would then be followed by the junior high schools the next year and then the elementary schools. The plan would be implemented during the 1958 school year which would begin in September 1957. The school board called for volunteers from all black Dunbar Junior High and Horace Mann High School to register. Prospective students were told they would not be able to participate in extracurricular activities if they were to transfer to Central High such as football, basketball, or choir. Carlotta Walls LaNier said, “Virgil said to us that we weren’t going to be able to go to the football games or basketball games. You’re not going to be able to participate in the choir or the drama club, or be on the track team. You can’t go to the prom. There were more cannots…” Many parents of the prospective students were threatened in losing their jobs if their child were to attend Central. Therefore, some students decided to stay where they were originally getting their schooling. By 1957, the NAACP had registered nine black students to attend the previously all white Little Rock Central High School. Students were selected on a criterion of excellent grades and attendance.
Protests against Integration Several segregationalists threatened to hold protest in front of Central High and physically block the nine African American students from entering the school. In support of these protests, Governor Orval Faubus deployed the Arkansas National Guard on September 2, 1957 which was the day before school was to start. Of course, the soldiers made headlines of in the news papers nationwide. On September 3, 1957, the Little Rock Nine arrived to enter Central High School, but they were turned away by the soldiers. “I thought Faubus was there to protect me, but I was wrong” said Thelma Mothershed Wair. The students had arrived at Central alone on the first day. By prior arrangement, they gathered at the 16th Street entrance with ministers accompanying them. Elizabeth Eckford, however, arrived at the other end of the block by herself. She was confronted by a mob screaming obscenities and threats chanting “Two, four, six, eight, we ain’t gonna integrate!” Jefferson Thomas said, “We didn’t know that Faubus’ idea of keeping the peace was to keep the blacks out.” Attorneys from the U.S. Justice Department requested an injunction against the Governor’s deployment of the soldiers from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas in Little Rock. Judge Ronald Davis granted the injunction and ordered the Governor to withdraw the National Guard on September 20, 1957. The Governor backed down and removed the troops from Central High. The Little Rock Police Department took the place of the National Guard. Yet hundreds of protestors still remained around the school. Protestors consisted of parents of white students at Central High and even the white students themselves. On Monday, September 23, 1957, the Little Rock Nine attempted again, more than two weeks after the first day of classes, to enter the school. About 1,000 people gathered in front of Central High that morning waiting for the nine black students to arrive. The police escorted the nine students to a side door where they quietly entered the building as classes were beginning. When the white mob learned that the students had reached and entered into the school, they began to challenge the police and made attempts to get closer to the school with shouts and threats. Fearful the police would be unable to control the riot, the school administration moved the nine out the side door before noon time. The next day, the Mayor of Little Rock, Woodrow Mann, asked President Eisenhower to send federal troops to finally enforce integration and protect the nine students. The President then deployed the elite 101st Airborne Division, “the Screaming Eagles”, of the United States Army to escort the students to school on September 25, 1957, their first full day of school. In a televised speech delivered to the nation, President Eisenhower stated, “Mob rule cannot be allowed to override the decisions of the courts.” A local unit of the Arkansas National Guard, commanded under Captain Leon E. Stumbaugh of North Little Rock, came under federal command, taking it away from the Governor. The National Guard replaced the 101st and remained on duty at Central for the remainder of the year. Captain Stumbaugh was the one who frequently dealt with the Little Rock Nine concerning their problems, angers, and fears. The Captain’s soldiers, who were just a little older than the students themselves, showed courage from all the taunts and attacks of students and other protestors.
Inside Central High School The Little Rock Nine had assigned guards to walk them from class to class. The guards could not accompany the students inside the classrooms, bathrooms or locker rooms. They would stand outside during those times. Because of this, the Little Rock Nine endured verbal and physical attacks from some of their classmates throughout the entire year. Although some white students tried to help, few students would actually befriend any of the nine. Those few students who did befriend them received similar treatment as the nine black students. Minnijean Brown, one of the Little Rock Nine, was suspended in December for dropping chili on some boys after they refused to let her pass to her seat in the cafeteria. She was later expelled in February 1958 for calling a girl, who had hit her with a purse, “white trash”. The white student was not punished in any way, which was the case in most situations. After Minnijean’s expulsion, students passed around cards that read, “One Down, Eight to Go.” Minnijean finished high school at New Lincoln School in New York City while living with Drs. Kenneth and Mamie Clarke. The Clarks were the social psychologists whose “doll test” work demonstrated for the Supreme Court in Brown, that racial prejudice and segregation caused African American children to develop a sense of inferiority. The remaining eight students completed the school year at Central. The nation focused its eyes on Little Rock’s Central High School as it underwent its first integrated school year which ended on May 27, 1958. Six hundred and one seniors graduated that spring, along with the first African American student to graduate from Central High School, Ernest Green. Ernest stated in Life Magazine in 1958, “It’s been an interesting year. I’ve had a course in human relations first hand.”
Daisy Bates and the Little Rock Nine Daisy Bates was an American Civil Rights leader, journalist, publisher and author. She fulfilled a dream of hers and created and ran her own newspaper in Little Rock calling it the Arkansas State Press. Her paper became the voice for civil rights movements. In 1952, Daisy was elected president of the Arkansas State Conference of NAACP branches. Daisy and her husband were important figures in the Little Rock Integration Crisis beginning in 1957. Since Daisy published a local black newspaper, and of course publicized the Supreme Court’s desegregation rulings. She guided and advised the nine students when they attempted to enroll at Little Rock Central High School, which was a previous all white school. Daisy Bates played a vital role the day the students were rejected entrance to the school the first day of school, she, being a publisher and a journalist, experienced and witnessed it on a much grander scale. The city council ordered the Little Rock police to arrest her and other NAACP officials. Being also a non confrontational person, her and others surrendered voluntarily. Daisy was only charged a fine by the judge but the NAACP lawyers appealed and eventually won a reversal in the United States Supreme Court.
Her involvement in the Little Rock Crisis lost much of the focus of her newspaper and was forced to close in 1959. In 1960, Daisy Bates moved to New York City where she wrote her memoir, The Long Shadow in Little Rock, about the crisis. In 1988 it won the National Book Award. Little Rock gave her the ultimate tribute, not only to Daisy but to the time period in which she helped, by opening the Daisy Bates Elementary School.
The Aftermath and Legacy The protests continued even after the commencement ceremony. Citizens continued to pressure the Little Rock School Board to segregate the schools once again. In August 1958, with support from Governor Faubus and the Arkansas State Legislature, the school board cancelled the entire 1959 school year for its three high schools rather than integrate them. Thousands of students left the city to attend high schools in other districts, or enrolled in all white private schools. One year later, the Little Rock Chamber of Commerce pressured the school board to reopen the schools once more. By the fall of 1959, Little Rock public schools had reopened as an integrated school system. When the schools reopened, Carlotta Walls and Jefferson Thomas returned to Central High School and graduated in 1960. Thelma Mothershed received her diploma from Central High School by taking correspondence courses to complete her studies. The rest of the Little Rock Nine completed their high school educations at different schools. For their courage and bravery in their fight for equality, Daisy Bates and the Little Rock Nine were awarded the NAACP Spingarn Medal in 1958. On November 9, 1999, they were awarded the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal by President Bill Clinton. Little Rock Central High School still functions as part of the Little Rock School District and now houses a Civil Rights Museum to commemorate the events of 1957.
The Little Rock Nine
Ernest Green Ernest Green was born on September 22, 1941 in Little Rock and was the oldest member of the Little Rock Nine. He was also the first out of the nine to graduate and become the first African American student to graduate from Little Rock Central High School. After high school, Ernest attended Michigan State University on a scholarship by an anonymous donor. Eventually he found out that the donor was John A. Hannah, the president of Michigan State. While at Michigan State, he continued to participate in protests and rallies in the fight for Civil Rights. Ironically, John A. Hannah was a target of Civil Rights protests before Green found out about his donation. Ernest graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1962 and a Master of Arts in 1964.
Ernest Green served as an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Affairs under Jimmy Carter’s administration. Since 1981 he has been employed as a private consultant. Ernest is married to Phyllis Green and they have three children: Adam, Jessica, and Mackenzie. The movie The Ernest Green Story was based on his life experiences during the segregation crisis in Little Rock and Central High. He also starred in the movie Crisis at Central High: The Little Rock 9. Today, he is currently a Managing Director in the fixed income department of Lehman Brothers in Washington, DC, where he focuses on public finance.
Elizabeth Eckford Elizabeth Eckford was born on October 1941. Of the nine, she was the one who was tormented by protesters when she arrived the first day of school on the other side of the block where the others were located. Elizabeth joined the U.S. Army and earned her G.E.D. before returning to Little Rock in the 1960’s. She attended Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. She held various jobs throughout her life. She had been a waitress, history teacher, welfare worker, unemployment and employment interviewer, and a military reporter. She is a mother of two sons.
Jefferson Thomas Jefferson Thomas was born in 1942. He is the youngest of seven children. Before enrolling at Central High School, he was attending Horace Mann High School and was a member of the school’s track team. He was of the target of many bullies at Central according to many of his accounts during the school years there. He graduated from Central High School in 1960. Thomas narrated the United States Information Agency’s 1964 film, Nine From Little Rock. In the film Jefferson said, “If Little Rock taught us nothing more, it taught us that problems can make us better.” The filmed received worldwide acclaim and even received an Academy Award. As an adult, Thomas worked as an accountant for the United States Department of Defense. He is now retired.
Terrance Roberts Born in 1941 in Little Rock, Arkansas, Terrance Roberts gained national popularity as one of the nine students. After one year at Central High School, he moved to Los Angeles with his family and finished at Los Angeles High School in 1959. He received a Bachelor’s degree in sociology from California State University in 1967 and he attended the University of California Los Angeles, receiving a Master’s degree in social welfare in 1970. In 1976, Terrance was awarded his PhD from Southern Illinois University in psychology. In 1994 he became department chair of the psychology program at Antioch University. He is currently a faculty member at Antioch and travels as a speaker and consultant.
Carlotta Walls LaNier Carlotta Walls Lanier was the youngest student of the Little Rock Nine. She returned to Little Rock Central High School in 1959 for her senior year as it reopened as an integrated school. Carlotta attended Michigan State University for two years before she moved to Denver with her family. In 1968, she earned her Bachelor of Science from Colorado State College, which is now the University of Northern Colorado. In 1977, she founded the LaNier and Company, a real estate brokerage firm. She currently lives in Englewood, Colorado.
Minnijean Brown Trickey She was expelled from Central High School in February, 1958, after several incidents including her infamous action of dumping a bowl of chili on the head of an attacking student in the school cafeteria. Minnijean attended Southern Illinois University and majored in journalism. She later moved to Canada where she received her Bachelor of Social Work in Native Human Services from Laurentian University. She received her Master of Social Work from Carleton University in Ontario, Canada. Under the Clinton administration, she served for a time as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Department of the Interior responsible for diversity. She currently lives in Maryland. Minnijean is a social activist and has worked on behalf of peacemaking, environmental issues, developing youth leadership, diversity education and training, cross-cultural communication, and gender and social justice advocacy.
Gloria Ray Karlmark
Gloria Ray Karlmark moved from Little Rock to Missouri and attended the newly integrated Kansas City Central High School. She graduated from the Illinois Institute of Technology, in Chicago in 1965. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in chemistry and mathematics. She served as teacher, mathematician, system analyst, and technical writer. She also founded and served as Editor-in-Chief of Computers in Industry, an international journal pf practice and experience of computer applications and industry. From 1982 to 1994, she went into early retirement before going back to the Netherlands. She went first for Philips Telecommunications in Hilversum, then later, for Philips Lighting in Eindhoven.
Thelma Mothershed Wair Thelma graduated from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale in 1964. She earned her Master’s degree in Guidance Counseling as well as an Administrative Certificate of Education from Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. Thelma taught home economics in the East St. Louis school system for 28 years before retiring in 1994.
Melba Pattillo Beals Melba Pattillo Beals earned her Bachelor’s degree from San Francisco State University. She then graduated from Columbia University with an advanced degree in communications. Melba worked as a reporter for NBC and has served as a communications consultant. She had also been a former People magazine journalist. Melba had written a book based on her experiences at Central High School. The book is entitled, Warriors Don’t Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock’s Central High.
The Anniversaries of the Little Rock Crisis and the Little Rock Nine On September 28, 1977, at the twentieth anniversary of the desegregation crisis, Ralph G. Brodie, the 1957-1958 student body president, spoke at a special occasion at Central High where he paid tribute to the “moderate, quiet voices.” He addressed three of the nine students who were present saying, “You’ve done much to assure the rights of others. Yours were acts of courage, and I salute you.” On October 24, 1987, thirty years after entering Central High, the Little Rock Nine returned as a group for the first time. They were met by Lottie Shackelford, Little Rock’s second black mayor. Melba Beals said, “We don’t come to open old wounds, but rather to celebrate and commemorate the great moment in history that changed the course of this nation and changed it for the better.” In September 25, 1997, forty years after the crisis, President Clinton met those first nine black students at Central High in a dramatic ceremony on the front steps of the school. The Central High Museum Visitor Center was dedicated to those brave students who made history. In forty years, much has changed at Central and in Little Rock. The school remains one of the leading educational centers in Middle America. The Little Rock Nine from Little Rock, Arkansas are known as the brave, quiet voices and played a pivotal aspect in African American history. The endured so much pain and humiliation, but were still strong and maintained that sense of non-violence throughout their ordeal. They had a lot of help along the way which ultimately led them to becoming the people that they are today. The nine students wouldn’t be remembered today if they hadn’t done something courageous in their lifetime. They were honored in so many ways by their city, and even by their nation. The Little Rock Nine began a movement which gave African American students hope that they too could be brave enough to walk the halls of a newly integrated school, an not be seen as a colored student, but as a fellow scholar. They gave the nation hope that one day everyone would live in equality.

References
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