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Definition & Background of the Little Rock Nine

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Definition & Background of the Little Rock Nine

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The Little Rock Nine were nine African American teens who integrated Central High in 1957 under heavy resistance. This article shares their integration process.

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"Reflections" captures the spirit of the Little Rock Nine in 1957& 2007, 50 years post-integration.
Lyuba Bogan

The End of Legal Segregation
In 1954, the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Supreme Court decision outlawed segregation in public education. Little Rock School District Superintendent Virgil Blossom devised a plan of gradual integration that would begin at Central High School in 1957. The school board called for volunteers from all-black Dunbar Junior High and Horace Mann High School to attend Central.

Prospective students were told they would not be able to participate in extracurricular activities if they transferred to Central such as football, basketball, or choir. Many of their parents were threatened with losing their jobs, and some students decided to stay at their own schools.

"[Blossom said] you're not 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 drama club, or be on the track team. You can't go to the prom. There were more cannots..."
Carlotta Walls LaNier

"When my tenth-grade teacher in our Negro school said there was a possibility of integration, I signed up. We all felt good. We knew that Central High School had so many more courses, and dramatics and speech and tennis courts and a big, beautiful stadium."
Minnijean Brown to Look Magazine, June 24, 1958

On September 3, 1957, the Little Rock Nine arrived to enter Central High School, but they were turned away by the Arkansas National Guard. Governor Orval Faubus called out the Arkansas National Guard the night before to, as he put it, "maintain and restore order..." The soldiers barred the African American students from entering.

"I was not prepared for what actually happened."
Elizabeth Eckford

"I thought he [Faubus] was there to protect me. How wrong I was."
Thelma Mothershed Wair

The students arrived at Central alone on the first day. By prior arrangement, they gathered at the 16th Street entrance with several local ministers who accompanied them. Elizabeth Eckford arrived at the other end of the block by herself. She was met by a mob screaming obscenities and threats, chanting, "Two, four, six, eight, we ain't gonna integrate!"

"We didn't know that his [Faubus'] idea of keeping the peace was keeping the blacks out."
Jefferson Thomas

More than two weeks went by before the Little Rock Nine again attempted to enter Central High School. On September 23, 1957, the Little Rock Nine entered the school. Outside, rioting broke out and the Little Rock police removed the Nine for their safety.

The President Becomes Involved
On September 24, 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered units of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division -the "Screaming Eagles"- into Little Rock and federalized the Arkansas National Guard. In a televised speech delivered to the nation, President Eisenhower stated, "Mob rule cannot be allowed to override the decisions of the courts."

On September 25, 1957, under federal troop escort, the Little Rock Nine made it inside for their first full day of school. The 101st Airborne left in October and the federalized Arkansas National Guard troops remained throughout the year.

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 the classrooms during class time. In spite of this, the Little Rock Nine endured verbal and physical attacks from some of their classmates throughout the school year. Although some white students tried to help, few white students befriended any of the Nine. Those who did received similar treatment as the Nine, such as hate mail and threats.

One of the Little Rock Nine, Minnijean Brown, 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." After Brown's expulsion, students passed around cards that read, "One Down, Eight to Go."

Brown finished high school at New Lincoln School in New York City, while living with Drs. Kenneth and Mamie Clark. 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. Senior Ernest Green was the first African American student to graduate from Central High School.

"It's been an interesting year. I've had a course in human relations first hand."
Ernest Green, Life Magazine, June, 1958

The following year, the city's high schools were closed to prevent further desegregation while the NAACP continued to pursue the legal case to integrate Little Rock's schools.

When the schools reopened, Carlotta Walls and Jefferson Thomas returned to Central and graduated in 1960. Thelma Mothershed received her diploma from Central High School by taking correspondence courses to complete her studies.

Little Rock Nine Biographies
The rest of the Little Rock Nine completed their high school educations at different schools. The Little Rock Nine have received numerous accolades and awards, from the renowned NAACP Spingarn Medal to the nation's highest civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal.

Minnijean Brown Trickey graduated from New Lincoln High School in 1959. She received a Bachelor of Social Work degree in Native Human Services from Laurentian University and a Master of Social Work degree at Carleton University, in Ontario Canada. Brown Trickey has worked in various settings committed to peacemaking, gender and social justice advocacy, youth leadership, diversity education and training, cross-cultural communication, and environmental issues. She served in Clinton Administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Workforce Diversity in the Department of the Interior. Brown Trickey continues to work as a teacher, writer, and motivational speaker; she is the subject of the critically acclaimed documentary, Journey to Little Rock: The Untold Story of Minnijean Brown Trickey.

After 60 years, the infamous photo of Elizabeth Eckford walking through the mob in front of Little Rock Central High School still serves as a symbol of white resistance against integration in the Civil Rights Movement. Along with the other eight students, Elizabeth faced her share of adversity within the walls of Central High and can recall numerous incidents of harassment and hostility at the hands of her white peers. After Governor Faubus closed all public high schools in Little Rock to prevent further integration during the 1958-1959 school year, Elizabeth moved to St. Louis, Missouri where she obtained a GED. Eckford served in the U.S. Army as a pay clerk, information specialist, and newspaper writer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. For her great contributions to social justice, Eckford has received many prestigious awards such as the Congressional Gold Medal, the NAACP Spingarn Medal, and the Humanitarian Award presented by the National Conference for Community and Justice. Today, Eckford is still a strong proponent of tolerance in every aspect of life.

Ernest Green is the first African American to graduate from Little Rock Central High School (May 1958). He holds a Bachelor of Science in Social Science and Master of Science in Sociology from Michigan State University as well as honorary doctorates from Michigan State University, Tougaloo College, and Central State University. Green served as Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training during the Carter Administration. He was appointed to Chairman of the African Development Foundation by President Bill Clinton and by Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley to serve as Chairman of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Capital Financing Advisory Board. Green is a recipient of the NAACP's Spingarn Medal, the Boy Scouts of America's Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, the Urban League's Frederick Douglass Freedom Medal, the John D. Rockefeller Public Service Award, and the Congressional Gold Medal.

Thelma Mothershed Wair received her diploma from Little Rock Central High School in 1960 after completing correspondence courses and transferrable summer school credits. She earned a bachelor's degree in Home Economics Education from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale and received a master's degree in Guidance and Counseling plus an Administrative Certificate in Education from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. Wair worked in the East St. Louis school system for 28 years - 10 years as a Home Economics teacher and 18 years as a counselor for elementary career education - before retiring in 1994. She also served at the St. Clair County Jail/Juvenile Detention Center in St. Clair County, Illinois and was an instructor of survival skills for women at the American Red Cross. In addition to the NAACP's Spingarn Medal and the Congressional Gold Medal, Wair has received numerous awards for her professional contributions and community service including the Outstanding Role Model award from the East St. Louis Chapter of the Top Ladies of Distinction and an award from the Early Childhood/Pre-Kindergarten staff from the East St. Louis School District. She collaborated with Richard J. Hansen for a book narrating her experiences from Central High School entitled Education Has No Color: The Story of Thelma Mothershed Wair, One of the Little Rock Nine.

Dr. Melba Pattillo Beals finished her high school education at Montgomery High School in Santa Rosa, California. Beals earned a bachelor's degree in Journalism from San Francisco State University, a Master of Arts in Communications from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in International Multicultural Studies from the University of San Francisco. She has worked as an on-camera television reporter for KQED's Newsroom, as an NBC-TV news reporter, and as a radio news talk show host for KGO, ABC radio, San Francisco. Dr. Beals founded the Department of Communications and Media Studies at the Dominican University of California. She has written four books based on her experiences at Central High School. Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High is a firsthand account of the experience that Beals and the Little Rock Nine encountered at Central High School. Other works include March Forward, Girl, the prequel to Warriors Don't Cry; White is a State of Mind, the sequel to Warriors Don't Cry; and I Will Not Fear, an examination of her faith through her journey of terror, oppression, and persecution. Dr. Beals is the recipient of the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, the Spingarn Medal, the Congressional Gold Medal, and is a communications consultant and motivational speaker.

Gloria Ray Karlmark graduated from Kansas City Central High School in 1960. She earned a bachelor's degree in Chemistry and Mathematics from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT); post-graduation, she joined the ITT Research Institute as Assistant Mathematician on the APT IV Project (robotics, numerical control, and online technical documentation) and collaborated with Boeing in Seattle, McDonnell-Douglas in Santa Monica, and the NASA Automation center in St. Louis. Karlmark has served as a teacher, mathematician, systems analyst, and technical writer. She founded and served as the Editor-in-Chief for Computers in Industry, an international journal of computer science and engineering. Karlmark also worked in the Netherlands for Philips Telecommunications in Hilversum and Philips Lighting in Eindhoven.

Dr. Terrence Roberts graduated from Los Angeles High School in 1959. He earned a bachelor's degree in Sociology from California State University and a master's degree in Social Welfare from the University of California at Los Angeles. In 1976, Roberts was awarded a Ph.D. in psychology from Southern Illinois University and later became Department Chair of the Psychology program at Antioch University, Los Angeles. He is the author of Lessons from Little Rock, a memoir of the 1957-58 school year at Central, and Simple, Not Easy, a reflection on community, social responsibility, and tolerance. Dr. Roberts is CEO of Terrence J. Roberts & Associates, a management consultant firm devoted to fair and equitable practices. He maintains a private psychology practice, conducts lectures, and presents workshops and seminars on a wide variety of topics. Dr. Roberts is the recipient of the Spingarn Medal and the Congressional Gold Medal.

Jefferson Thomas returned to graduate from Little Rock Central High School in 1960. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Los Angeles State College and served as a staff sergeant in South Vietnam with the 9th Infantry Division, United States Army. Thomas, with his father, operated the family-owned Retail Sales Business, worked as an Accounting Clerk and Supervisor for Mobil Oil Corporation - Los Angeles Credit Card Center, and later as an Accounting Clerk with the Department of Defense. He was the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Ohio Dominican University in recognition of his life-long efforts in human rights and equality. Jefferson Allison Thomas died on September 5, 2010 in Columbus, Ohio.

Carlotta Walls LaNier returned to graduate from Little Rock Central High School in 1960. LaNier attended Michigan State University for two years before moving with her family to Denver. In 1968, she earned a Bachelor of Science from Colorado State College, now the University of Northern Colorado. In 1977, she founded LaNier and Company, a real estate brokerage firm. LaNier serves as president of the Little Rock Nine Foundation and is a member of the Denver Chapter of The Links, Incorporated, and the Johnson Legacy, Inc. Board of Directors. In addition to the NAACP's Spingarn Medal and the Congressional Gold Medal awarded to her as a member of the Little Rock Nine, LaNier is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from the University of Northern Colorado and is an inductee in the Colorado Woman's Hall of Fame, the Girl Scouts Women of Distinction and the National Women's Hall of Fame. She is the author of A Mighty Long Way: My Journey to Justice at Little Rock Central High School.

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The Little Rock Nine (U.S. National Park Service)

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The End of Legal Segregation In 1954, the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Supreme Court decision outlawed segregation in public education. Little Rock School District Superintendent Virgil Blossom devised a plan of gradual integration that would begin at Central High School in 1957.

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Connection to Brown v Board of Education

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Connection to Brown v Board of Education

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In 1954, Brown legally desegregated schools. The Little Rock crisis showed the gap between the law and the enforcement. This act forced the federal government to step in.

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Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus tried to stop the Little Rock Nine from entering Central High by calling in the National Guard. This led President Eisenhower to send federal troops to escort the students. This article also covers violence endured.

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On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education that segregated schools are "inherently unequal." In September 1957, as a result of that ruling, nine African-American students enrolled at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. The ensuing struggle between segregationists and integrationists, the State of Arkansas and the federal government, President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, has become known in modern American history as the "Little Rock Crisis." The crisis gained world-wide attention. When Governor Faubus ordered the Arkansas National Guard to surround Central High School to keep the nine students from entering the school, President Eisenhower ordered the 101st Airborne Division into Little Rock to insure the safety of the "Little Rock Nine" and that the rulings of the Supreme Court were upheld. The manuscript holdings of the Eisenhower Presidential Library contain a large amount of documentation on this historic test of the Brown vs. Topeka ruling and school integration.

Press release, President Eisenhower's telegram to Governor Faubus, September 5, 1957 [Kevin McCann Collection of Press and Radio Conferences and Press Releases, Box 20, September 1957; NAID #12237650]

Telegram, Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus to President Eisenhower, September 12, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (1); NAID #12237653]

Press release, statements by President Eisenhower and Governor Faubus from Newport, Rhode Island, September 14, 1957 [Kevin McCann Collection of Press and Radio Conferences and Press Releases, Box 20, September 1957; NAID #17366732]

Diary - notes dictated by President Eisenhower on October 8, 1957 concerning meeting with Governor Faubus at Newport, Rhode Island, September 14, 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, Administration Series, Box 23, Little Rock Ark (2); NAID #186622]

Press release, statement by the President from the U.S. Naval Base, Newport, Rhode Island, September 21, 1957 [Gerald D. Morgan Records, Box 6, Civil Rights (2); NAID #17366808]

Telegram, Woodrow Wilson Mann, Mayor of Little Rock, to President Eisenhower, September 23, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (2); NAID #12237734]

Press release, Proclamation 3204, Obstruction of Justice in the State of Arkansas, by the President of the United States of America, September 23, 1957 [Kevin McCann Collection of Press and Radio Conferences and Press Releases, Box 20, September 1957; NAID #17366742]

Press release, Executive Order 10730, Providing for the Removal of an Obstruction of Justice Within the State of Arkansas, September 24, 1957 [Kevin McCann Collection of Press and Radio Conferences and Press Releases, Box 20, September 1957; NAID #17366749]

Telegram, Woodrow Wilson Mann to President Eisenhower, September 24, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (2); NAID #17366836]

Letter, President Eisenhower to General Alfred Gruenther, September 24, 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, Administration Series, Box 16, Alfred M. Gruenther 1956-57 (2); NAID #17368373]

Handwritten notes by President Eisenhower on decision to send troops to Little Rock, September 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, Administration Series, Box 23, Little Rock, Arkansas (2)]

Press release, containing speech on radio and television by President Eisenhower, September 24, 1957[Kevin McCann Collection of Press and Radio Conferences and Press Releases, Box 20, September 1957; NAID #17366765]

Radio and Television Address to the American People on the Situation in Little Rock, September 24, 1957 [Audio recording: 1/4 in. open reel; Presidential Series: Press Conferences, Impromptu Remarks, and Radio Addresses; EL-D16-89]

Draft of above speech on Little Rock, undated [DDE's Papers as President, Speech Series, Box 22, Integration-Little Rock Ark 9/24/1957; NAID #12237735]

Telephone calls, September 24, 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, DDE Diary Series, Box 27, Sept. 1957 Telephone Calls; NAID #17368366]

Telephone calls, September 25, 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, DDE Diary Series, Box 27, Sept. 1957 Telephone Calls; NAID #17368370]

Telegram, Congressman Oren Harris, Arkansas, to President Eisenhower, September 26, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (3); NAID #17366843]

Telegram, Georgia Senator Richard B. Russell to President Eisenhower, September 26, 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, Administration Series, Box 23, Little Rock Arkansas (2); NAID #17366867]

Letter, President Eisenhower to Senator Russell, September 27, 1957 [DDE's Papers as President, Administration Series, Box 23, Little Rock Ark (2); NAID #17366869]

Letter, President Eisenhower to Congressman Oren Harris, September 30, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (3); NAID #17366850]

Telegram, parents of the nine African-American students to President Eisenhower, October 1, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5 (5); NAID #17368589]

Telegram, Senator John Stennis, Mississippi, to President Eisenhower, October 1, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (4); NAID #17366868]

Letter, President Eisenhower to Mr. W.B. Brown, October 4, 1957 (identical letter sent to each set of parents) [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142 A-5-A (5); NAID #17366887]

Letter, President Eisenhower to Senator Stennis, October 7, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5-A (7); NAID #17366882]

Letter, J. Lee Rankin, U.S. Solicitor General, to Sherman Adams, Assistant to the President, concerning list of Court orders and plans for school desegregation, October 28, 1957 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5 (4); NAID #17368590]

Attachment to Rankin letter listing court orders and plans for school desegregation, undated [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 615, OF 142-A-5 (4); NAID #17368591]

Situation Report No. 176, by the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Military Operations, December 17, 1957 [Office of the Staff Secretary, Subject Series, Alphabetical Subseries, Box 17, Little Rock Vol. I-Reports (7); NAID #17367068]

Situation Report No. 211, February 6, 1958 [Office of the Staff Secretary, Subject Series, Alphabetical Subseries, Box 17, Little Rock Vol. I-Reports (8); NAID #17367081]

Situation Report No. 217, February 14, 1958 [Office of the Staff Secretary, Subject Series, Alphabetical Subseries, Box 17, Little Rock Vol. I-Reports (8); NAID #17367504]

Situation Report No. 218, February 17, 1958 [Office of the Staff Secretary, Subject Series, Alphabetical Subseries, Box 17, Little Rock Vol. I-Reports (8); NAID #17367509]

Situation Report No. 226, February 27, 1958 [Office of the Staff Secretary, Subject Series, Alphabetical Subseries, Box 17, Little Rock Vol. I-Reports (8); NAID #17367516]

Situation Report No. 233, March 10, 1958 [Office of the Staff Secretary, Subject Series, Alphabetical Subseries, Box 17, Little Rock Vol. I-Reports (8); NAID #17367521]

Letter, Jackie Robinson to President Eisenhower, May 13, 1958 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 614, OF 142-A (6); NAID #17368592]

Letter, President Eisenhower to Jackie Robinson, June 4, 1958 [DDE's Records as President, Official File, Box 614, OF 142-A (6); NAID #17368593]

Secondary Sources:

The Eisenhower Administration and Black Civil Rights by Robert F. Burk, Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1984.

A Moderate Among Extremists: Dwight D. Eisenhower and the School Desegregation Crisis by James C. Duram, Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1981.

The White House Years: Waging Peace, 1956-1961 by Dwight D. Eisenhower, Heinemann: London, 1966.

Crisis at Central High by Elizabeth Huckaby, Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1980.

Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality by Richard Kluger, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1976.

Black Man in the White House by E. Frederic Morrow, New York: Coward-McCann, 1963.

Additional Information:
Civil Rights School Integration Subject Guide
Photographs:

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Civil Rights: The Little Rock School Integration Crisis

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On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education that segregated schools are "inherently unequal." In September 1957, as a result of that ruling, nine African-American students enrolled at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.

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Even with protection, the Nine endured daily abuse such as verbal and physical assaults. Their resilience while being terrorized showed the bravery needed to break segregation.

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Orval Faubus

On September 2, 1957, Governor Orval Faubus announced that he would call in the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the African American students' entry to Central High, claiming this action was for the students' own protection. In a televised address, Faubus insisted that violence and bloodshed might break out if Black students were allowed to enter the school.

The Mother's League held a sunrise service at the school on September 3 as a protest against integration. But that afternoon, federal judge Ronald Davies issued a ruling that desegregation would continue as planned the next day.

Elizabeth Eckford

The Little Rock Nine arrived for the first day of school at Central High on September 4, 1957. Eight arrived together, driven by Bates.

Elizabeth Eckford's family, however, did not have a telephone, and Bates could not reach her to let her know of the carpool plans. Therefore, Eckford arrived alone.

The Arkansas National Guard, under orders of Governor Faubus, prevented any of the Little Rock Nine from entering the doors of Central High. One of the most enduring images from this day is a photograph of Eckford, alone with a notebook in her hand, stoically approaching the school as a crowd of hostile and screaming white students and adults surround her.

Eckford later recalled that one of the women spat on her. The image was printed and broadcast widely in the United States and abroad, bringing the Little Rock controversy to national and international attention.

Ronald Davies

In the following weeks, federal judge Ronald Davies began legal proceedings against Governor Faubus, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower attempted to persuade Faubus to remove the National Guard and let the Little Rock Nine enter the school.

Judge Davies ordered the Guard removed on September 20, and the Little Rock Police Department took over to maintain order. The police escorted the nine African American students into the school on September 23, through an angry mob of some 1,000 white protesters gathered outside. Amidst ensuing rioting, the police removed the nine students.

The following day, President Eisenhower sent in 1,200 members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and placed them in charge of the 10,000 National Guardsmen on duty. Escorted by the troops, the Little Rock Nine attended their first full day of classes on September 25.

Numerous legal challenges to integration continued throughout the year, and Faubus repeatedly expressed his wish that the Little Rock Nine be removed from Central High.

Although several of the Black students had positive experiences on their first day of school, according to a September 25, 1957, report in The New York Times, they experienced routine harassment and even violence throughout the rest of the year.

Melba Patillo, for instance, was kicked, beaten and had acid thrown in her face. At one point, white students burned an African American effigy in a vacant lot across from the school. Gloria Ray was pushed down a flight of stairs, and the Little Rock Nine were barred from participating in extracurricular activities.

Minnijean Brown was expelled from Central High School in February 1958 for retaliating against the attacks. Harassment went beyond the students: Gloria Ray's mother was fired from her job with the State of Arkansas when she refused to remove her daughter from the school. The 101st Airborne and the National Guard remained at Central High School for the duration of the year.

Ernest Green

On May 25, 1958, Ernest Green, the only senior among the Little Rock Nine, became the first African American graduate of Central High.

In September 1958, one year after Central High was integrated, Governor Faubus closed all of Little Rock's high schools for the entire year, pending a public vote, to prevent African American attendance. Little Rock citizens voted 19,470 to 7,561 against integration and the schools remained closed.

Other than Green, the rest of the Little Rock Nine completed their high school careers via correspondence or at other high schools across the country. Eckford joined the Army and later earned her General Education Equivalency diploma. Little Rock's high schools reopened in August 1959.

Did you know?

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. attended graduation ceremonies at Central High School in May 1958 to see Ernest Green, the only senior among the Little Rock Nine, receive his diploma.

Little Rock Nine Aftermath

Several of the Little Rock Nine went on to distinguished careers.

Green served as assistant secretary of the federal Department of Labor under President Jimmy Carter. Brown worked as deputy assistant secretary for workforce diversity in the Department of the Interior under President Bill Clinton. Patillo worked as a reporter for NBC.

The group has been widely recognized for their significant role in the civil rights movement. In 1999, President Clinton awarded each member of the group the Congressional Gold Medal. The nine also all received personal invitations to attend the inauguration of President Barack Obama in 2009.

Jefferson Thomas became the first of the Little Rock Nine to die when he succumbed to pancreatic cancer at the age of 67 on September 5, 2010. After graduating from Central High, Thomas served in the Army in Vietnam, earned a business degree and worked as an accountant for private companies and the Pentagon.

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Little Rock Nine - Definition, Names & Facts | HISTORY

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The Little Rock Nine were a group of nine Black students who enrolled at formerly all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, in September 1957. Their attendance at the school was a test of Brown v. Board of Education, a landmark 1954 Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation in public schools unconstitutional.

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Although some resisted integration, many white allies in Little Rock fought back. The WEC which was made up of white women advocated for reopening public schools that had been shut to avoid integration.

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The Little Rock Nine showed the nation that enforcing desegregation required action. Their story inspires youth activism and remains a crucial moment in the fight for educational equity.

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Why Little Rock Nine’s Legacy Still Matters

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On the anniversary of the desegregation of Little Rock Central High, Black students still attend racially segregated K-12 schools.

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The Little Rock Nine helped break down legal segregation however some modern schools are still segregated by income inequality and school funding. 40% of Black and Latino students attend schools that are 90 - 100% nonwhite.

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Impact of Classroom Segregation on Student Education | American University

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The history of classroom segregation in the US reflects the nation’s continuing legacy of racism and systemic racial inequality.

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Political efforts to defund DEI programs in Southern schools threaten to erase teaching about civil rights landmarks like Central High, making the story of The Little Rock Nine more important than ever.

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The next day I spoke to a former Children's Crusader and survivor of the 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing - who also chose to remain anonymous for fear of government interference with her work - and asked if Trump's assault on DEI and Black history scares her. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, for example, which she has worked with to tell her story, is currently at risk of being wholly cut off from governmental funding. "It does," she said. "Nobody can stop me from talking, but if it's banned..."

She paused before continuing: "If you're watching the news, they're shipping [immigrants] out of here. It could be you; it could be me. We have to look out for each other. My hope is that, when you see these negative things happening, you'll remember the things I've said. I'll march as long as I can, and I'll tell these stories as long as I can, but I'm counting on you guys," she shared, referring to young people.

"I've lived long enough to see us at our very worst, and I've seen us rise and do things I could have never imagined," she said further. "And I see us faltering again."

Throughout this trip, I was struck deeply by the experience of standing at the sites where such great evils occurred - and by what the silencing of this history could mean for our country's future. It is a common adage that those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it, but it was only while standing outside the Montgomery Capitol, where Confederate and Civil Rights monuments stand side by side, watching an anti-Trump "Hands Off!" protest develop, that I truly grasped the danger of this moment.

Too many of us have fallen for the pernicious fallacy that America has moved past these awful events. But our nation has yet to recover from Jim Crow. Alabama only legalized interracial marriage in 2000. In parts of the Deep South, white parents kept high school proms effectively segregated through the early 2000s by hosting private dances for their children. Mississippi did not officially ratify the Constitution's 13th amendment - which abolished slavery - until 2013.

As I returned home from the airport to the supposedly political safe haven of New York City, I couldn't stop thinking about a fact I learned on this trip: that Wall Street is named after a wall built by enslaved people. Then I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that many people may never know such history.

As MLK's son Martin Luther King III said when he spoke to my class, remembering history "is not about collective guilt, but about collective responsibility. You have to ask yourself what kind of America you want to create."
Editor's note: This article has been updated to remove inaccurate information about the National Civil Rights Museum's funding and programming.

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Trump's DEI Purge Is Erasing Civil Rights History Across the South

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The Trump administration's attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion are fundamentally about rewriting US history - covering up the scars of racism that are an inescapable part of our nation's past.

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The story of the Little Rock Nine is a powerful reminder that access to a good education has always been tied to social justice. In 1957, nine African American students integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. This event became a national symbol of the struggle to desegregate public schools following the Brown v Board of Education decision that declared segregation unconstitutional. Little Rock Nine represents the fight for equal educational opportunity. Even though schools no longer can be segregated legally, many schools in low income areas are racially divided. Equity in education today is still something schools struggle with. Teachers should work to ensure all students have fair resources and experiences.