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The Little Rock Nine were 9 African American students who fought to have the same education as white students. They were backed and supported by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Eisenhower sent federal troops to the Central High School and drove them to the school on the first day and stayed with them there until November.

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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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This Article is more fact-forward, showing the dates that they wanted to enter the school and how the Little Rock Nine students were harassed by the white students.

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National Museum of African American History and Culture

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In 1954 the United States Supreme Court ruled that segregated schools were illegal. The case, Brown v. The Board of Education, has become iconic for Americans because it marked the formal beginning of the end of segregation.

But the gears of change grind slowly. It wasn't until September 1957 when nine teens would become symbols, much like the landmark decision we know as Brown v. The Board of Education, of all that was in store for our nation in the years to come.

The "Little Rock Nine," as the nine teens came to be known, were to be the first African American students to enter Little Rock's Central High School. Three years earlier, following the Supreme Court ruling, the Little Rock school board pledged to voluntarily desegregate its schools. This idea was explosive for the community and, like much of the South, it was fraught with anger and bitterness.

On September 2, 1957 the night prior to what was to be the teens' first day in Central High classrooms, Arkansas governor Orval Faubus ordered the state's National Guard to block their entrance. Faubus said it was for the safety of the nine students.

On September 4, just 24 hours after a federal judge ordered the Little Rock Nine to begin attending Central High immediately, a belligerent mob, along with the National Guard, again prevented the teens from entering the school.

Sixteen days later a federal judge ordered the National Guard removed. Once again on September 23, the Little Rock Nine attempted to enter the school. Though escorted by Little Rock police into a side door, another angry crowd gathered and tried to rush into Central High. Fearing for the lives of the nine students, school officials sent the teens home. They did, however, manage to attend classes for about three hours.

Finally, 52 years ago today, on September 25, 1957, following a plea from Little Rock's mayor, Woodrow Mann, President Dwight Eisenhower federalized the National Guard and sent U.S. Army troops to the scene. Personally guarded by soldiers from the National Guard soldiers and the Army's 101st Airborne, the Little Rock Nine began regular class attendance at Central High.

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The "Little Rock Nine," as the nine teens came to be known, were to be the first African American students to enter Little Rock's Central High School. Three years earlier, following the Supreme Court ruling, the Little Rock school board pledged to voluntarily desegregate its schools.

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This article is about how the Little Rock Nine dealt with all the harassment and how Daisy Bates was the President of the Arkansas NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) and they sued the Little Rock School Board and how she took the Little Rock Nine under her wing and preparing them for the violence they would come across.

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Imagine showing up to your first day of school and being greeted by an angry mob and the National Guard. On September 4, 1957 nine African American students arrived at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. They made their way through a crowd shouting obscenities and even throwing objects. Once the students reached the front door the National Guard prevented them from entering the school and were forced to go home. The students returned on September 29 th. This time they were protected by federal troops. The students were able to enter the school, finally integrating Central High School. This group of students became known as the "Little Rock Nine."

Many schools in the South refused to admit black students, even though the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision decreed school segregation unconstitutional. Despite resistance Civil Rights organizations worked to enroll black students in segregated schools. In Arkansas, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) recruited young girls and boys to integrate schools. Daisy Bates was the president of the Arkansas NAACP chapter. She was an expert organizer. Under Bates, the NAACP sued the Little Rock school board. Then she and her husband recruited nine students to integrate the all-white Central High School.

Bates took on the responsibility of preparing the "Little Rock Nine" for the violence and intimidation they would face inside and outside the school. She taught the students non-violent tactics and even became actively involved with Central High School's Parent organization. When the students were barred from entering the school the first time, Bates created a strategy to protect them from protestors.

Although the Supreme Court deemed segregation unconstitutional, the Arkansas governor refused to let the students enter. This clash between state and federal authorities culminated with President Dwight D. Eisenhower sending federal troops to protect the "Little Rock Nine." With the protection from the federal troops the nine African American students were able to attend Central High School.

By Arlisha Norwood, NWHM Fellow

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Imagine showing up to your first day of school and being greeted by an angry mob and the National Guard. On September 4, 1957 nine African American students arrived at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. They made their way through a crowd shouting obscenities and even throwing objects.

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The NAACP is the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. This group still exists and shows that it is important that they are trying to erase racial prejudice. They have helped with the W.E.B. Du Bois Trail and helped in the Little Rock Nine. This is where Daisy Bates was from, and she helped the Little Rock Nine in most of this. She was able to sue the school to be able to get them to go to the school they needed to go to.

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The NAACP is the home of grassroots activism for civil rights and social justice. We advocate, agitate, and litigate for the civil rights due to Black America.

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7 of the Little Rock students are still living and are Minnijean Brown, Elizabeth Eckford. Ernest Green, Melba Patillo, Gloria Ray, Terrence Roberts, and Carlotta Walls are all still living and continue to live on, and are doing a great job, all having successful careers and thriving.

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There are two members of the Little Rock Nine who are no longer living. Thelma Mothershed died at the age of 83 and was a teacher. She died in 2024, and she was the oldest member of the Little Rock Nine. The other member of the Little Rock Nine is Jefferson Thomas. He died in 2010 at the age of 67, and he lost his fight to cancer, and was the youngest of the Little Rock Nine.

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This article explores the parallels between the events of the Little Rock Nine and current developments. In the 2023-2024 school year, the state was requiring that the graduates not graduate if they did not take and pass an AP African American History class. They are waiving a 98-dollar test fee for the students so that they could take the class and be able to succeed in the class with learning about what was happening in their state without having to pay for a test that was not required the year before.

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The Legacy of the Little Rock Nine

In early September 1957 nine Black high school students-Minnijean Brown, Terrance Roberts, Elizabeth Eckford, Ernest Green, Thelma Mothershed, Melba Patillo, Gloria Ray, Jefferson Thomas, and Carlotta Walls-headed to Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas to begin the academic year. Famously known as the Little Rock Nine, their attendance was organized in cooperation with the local chapter of the NAACP and the Little Rock School District Superintendent Virgil Blossom in an effort to begin integrating Arkansas schools following the Supreme Court's 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision. But under orders of Arkansas governor Orval Faubus, the state's National Guard barred the nine Black students from entering Central High School while angry white protestors shouted abuse.

These nine young people demonstrated great courage and perseverance in their attempt to integrate Central High School and were finally able to attend classes following intervention by President Dwight Eisenhower. As the world learned of their bravery amid such a hostile environment, the Little Rock Nine inspired a wave of desegregation in the United States.

Eventually eight of the nine students were able to finish the academic year at the newly integrated school, with Ernest Green becoming the first African American graduate of Central High School. Upon graduation, Green told Life Magazine, "It's been an interesting year. I've had a course in human relations first hand."

As we commemorate the heroic actions of the Little Rock Nine, this anniversary serves not just as an important moment in history worth learning about, but as an evocative reminder of why history education is so necessary to our civic literacy. We've made great strides, but our society still remains deeply unequitable. And even within our progress we must not forget how hard won it was-we must remember that nine teeangers, discriminated against simply because of the color of their skin, should not have had to endure constant jeering, harassment, and terror in order to help our country get closer to our goal of equity.

A Stalled Progress

The Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954-which overturned the state-sanctioned segregation codified by the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896-took a vital step forward in dismantling the practice of barring Blacks from various public spaces. As the groundbreaking research of psychologists Drs. Kenneth and Mamie Clark showed, the separate and unequal learning environments of Black and white children contributed to Black children developing a profoundly negative sense of self.

Three years after Brown, the dramatic events of Central High School's integration unfolded. That was 66 years ago. And yet, the progress that our country has made in terms of integration in our school systems has fallen far short of the promise of truly equitable education.

The US Department of Education released a report in May 2023 finding that "progress toward increased racial and socio-economic diversity has stalled in many communities as segregation patterns have persisted, leading to inequitable access and outcomes for students."

And last year research from a USC-Stanford University collaboration called the Segregation Index highlighted that segregation is growing. "In large school districts, white-Black segregation has increased 35% and economic segregation has increased 47% over the past 30 years."

The Segregation Index also shows that segregation directly connects to unequitable education opportunities. The reasons for continued segregation are many and complicated. Changing these conditions is possible, but it requires policymakers and school leaders to make a concerted effort to bring diverse student bodies together.

Desegregation at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas was a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement-it underscores, like so many other moments from our civil rights struggle-that anyone can be a changemaker, including nine teengagers up against a barrage of people who wanted them to fail.

Central High School at Odds with the Arkansa State Government in 2023

Two days before most high schools started the 2023-24 school year, officials from the Arkansas Department of Education called teachers to let them know that the state would not give credit toward graduation to students who took Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies. The reason: a concern from Arkansas officials that the course could violate a new curriculum restriction law, passed in January of this year.

Despite this sudden change, the Little Rock School District, which includes Central High School, announced that it will continue to offer AP African American Studies and intends to offer credit to enrolled students. They also plan to make sure students aren't hindered by the $98 AP exam fee following Arkansas's decision to prevent students in need from receiving state assistance to pay for the exam.

Current Little Rock school board member and attorney Ali Noland told CNN that nearly 100 students at Central High School are signed up for the course this year. He asserts that AP African American Studies teaches an essential and important part of American history. And, in response to this news, five members of the Little Rock Nine made a joint statement with the NAACP Center for Education Innovation and Research noting the importance of teaching a full and inclusive history. Below is an excerpt from their statement:

"[We] were among the nine brave students who faced violence, hatred, and intimidation to integrate Central High School in 1957. We endured unimaginable hardships and sacrifices to fight for our right to quality education and equal opportunity. We are proud of our contribution to the civil rights movement and the advancement of democracy in this country. We consider the accurate retelling of our history an American right for those of us who endured, a necessity for student learning and mandatory for educational progress in this country."

Resources for the Classroom

So how do we best celebrate the memory of the Little Rock Nine and what they accomplished? Perhaps considering one or more of the following questions can inspire reflection that will help you commemorate this historic event.

How much power do ordinary people have to change the world?

Can you think of disparities that exist in your community?

What are the consequences of dividing people by race?

This unit investigates the actions taken by the Little Rock Nine and others in the Little Rock community amid the civil rights movement during efforts to desegregate Central High School in 1957.

More than 60 years after Brown v. Board of Education, this gives students an overview of the problem of school segregation in the United States today and opens a discussion about possible solutions.

The NAACP arranged for the Little Rock Nine to be escorted to school on the day after Governor Faubus's speech that called for the Arkansas National Guard to block their entrance. One of the students, Elizabeth Eckford, could not be reached and was not made aware of how unwelcome she would be once she arrived at school. In this interview Elizabeth details the confusion and intensity surrounding the morning she tried to enter Central High School.

In 1963, 225,000 students boycotted Chicago's public schools to protest segregation and unequal conditions in white and Black schools. Explore the strategies and risks of the boycott, while also considering bigger-picture questions about social progress.

Learn about the Mendez family's experience as Mexican Americans fighting against school segregation in Southern California during the 1940s.

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The Little Rock Nine: Connecting 1957 to Today

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Resistance to integration in the US didn't stop just because of a Supreme Court ruling. But nine Black students from Little Rock helped change minds.

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“Little Rock Nine.” National Women’s History Museum, www.womenshistory.org/resources/general/little-rock-nine. Accessed 15 June 2025.

The Little Rock Nine | National Museum of African American History and Culture, nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/little-rock-nine. Accessed 15 June 2025.

“Little Rock Nine.” History.Com, A&E Television Networks, 28 May 2025, www.history.com/articles/central-high-school-integration.

Weingartner, J. (2023, September 14). The Little Rock Nine: Connecting 1957 to Today | Facing History & Ourselves. Www.facinghistory.org. https://www.facinghistory.org/ideas-week/little-rock-nine-connecting-1957-today

Jaynes, G. D. (2018). Little Rock Nine | Names, Facts, & Segregation. In Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Little-Rock-Nine

Dillard, C. (2019, February 6). Beyond the Little Rock Nine. Learning for Justice. https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/beyond-the-little-rock-nine

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This Article explores the fact that the Little Rock Nine students stayed home while President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Governor Faubus, and Little Rock's Mayor all sat down to figure out a way to make it safe for these nine students to go to school, get an education, and not get hurt in the process it took them 18 days to come up with a plan. They came up with the plan to send them with reinforced backup.

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Little Rock Nine, group of African American high-school students who challenged racial segregation in the public schools of Little Rock, Arkansas. The group-consisting of Melba Pattillo, Ernest Green, Elizabeth Eckford, Minnijean Brown, Terrence Roberts, Carlotta Walls, Jefferson Thomas, Gloria Ray, and Thelma Mothershed-became the centre of the struggle to desegregate public schools in the United States, especially in the South. The events that followed their enrollment in Little Rock Central High School provoked intense national debate about racial segregation and civil rights.

During the summer of 1957, the Little Rock Nine enrolled at Little Rock Central High School, which until then had been all white. The students' effort to enroll was supported by the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954), which had declared segregated schooling to be unconstitutional.

Warned by the Little Rock board of education not to attend the first day of school, the nine African American students arrived on the second day accompanied by a small interracial group of ministers. They encountered a large white mob in front of the school, who began shouting, throwing stones, and threatening to kill the students. In addition, about 270 soldiers of the Arkansas National Guard, sent by Arkansas Gov. Orval Eugene Faubus, blocked the school's entrance. Faubus had declared his opposition to integration and his intention to defy a federal court order requiring desegregation.

The confrontation in Little Rock drew international attention to racism and civil rights in the United States as well as to the battle between federal and state power. Television and newspaper reporters devoted substantial coverage to the "Little Rock Nine," as the African American students were called.

Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Governor Faubus, and Little Rock's mayor, Woodrow Mann, discussed the situation over the course of 18 days, during which time the nine students stayed home. The students returned to the high school on September 23, entering through a side door to avoid the protesters' attention and wrath.

They were eventually discovered, however, and white protesters became violent, attacking African American bystanders as well as reporters for northern newspapers. The students were sent home, but they returned on September 25, protected by U.S. soldiers. Despite Eisenhower's publicly stated reluctance to use federal troops to enforce desegregation, he recognized the potential for violence and state insubordination. He thus sent the elite 101st Airborne Division, called the "Screaming Eagles," to Little Rock and placed the Arkansas National Guard under federal command.

The Little Rock Nine continued to face physical and verbal attacks from white students throughout their studies at Central High. One of the students, Minnijean Brown, fought back and was expelled. The remaining eight students, however, attended the school for the rest of the academic year. At the end of the year, in 1958, senior Ernest Green became the first African American to graduate from Little Rock Central High School.

Governor Faubus was reelected in 1958, and, rather than permit desegregation, he closed all of Little Rock's schools. Many school districts in the South followed Little Rock's example, closing schools or implementing "school-choice" programs that subsidized white students' attendance at private segregated academies, which were not covered by the Supreme Court's decision. Little Rock Central High School did not reopen with a desegregated student body until 1960, and efforts to integrate schools and other public areas throughout the country continued through the 1960s.

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Little Rock Nine | Names, Significance, Facts, & Segregation

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Little Rock Nine, group of African American high-school students who challenged racial segregation in the public schools of Little Rock, Arkansas. The group became the center of the struggle to desegregate public schools in the United States, and their actions provoked intense national debate about civil rights.

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Current Things About The Little Rock Nine

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Current Things About The Little Rock Nine

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Some things that they talk about in this article are that they are using the events of the Little Rock Nine to promote this horrible thing that occurred, and flip it to a positive, and teachers are teaching this to show their students that you can make your voice heard if you have a strong enough backbone and willingness to do so.

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Skip to main content

Your students are probably familiar with the Little Rock Nine-a courageous group of black students who integrated Little Rock's Central High School in 1957 against a backdrop of violent protesters and, eventually, the Arkansas National Guard. They may recognize the photographs of these brave students or remember their stories.

But are they aware that the same scenario played out again and again across U.S. cities for the next several decades? Are they able to connect this past to how they access their education today?

It's possible that they cannot, as the narrative about school desegregation in the United States tends to be simplified and accelerated. Schools were segregated, the story goes, and then Little Rock Nine happened, and now everything is fine.

It's a good time to delve into this history. We're approaching the 65th anniversary of the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling-when the United States Supreme Court ruled that separating school children by race was unconstitutional.

Brown was progress in that it was a legal win. But many communities struggled to comply with the law well into the 1980s and even beyond. It took the work of activist organizations, students and federal judges to force some school districts to comply. And by the 1990s, many previously integrated districts started to see a return to segregated schools.

Reviewing this history and showing how it parallels with issues today can help students better understand the importance of equitable educational facilities and recognize their power to participate in our democratic society.

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Skip to main content Your students are probably familiar with the Little Rock Nine-a courageous group of black students who integrated Little Rock's Central High School in 1957 against a backdrop of violent protesters and, eventually, the Arkansas National Guard. They may recognize the photographs of these brave students or remember their stories.

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This article hones in on the fact that this horrible and disgusting harassment and threatening, and beating up of African Americans before and after, and still currently. It is a shame. It shows that people are cruel and some are downright evil.

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Written by: Stewart Burns, Union Institute & University

By the end of this section, you will:

Explain how and why the civil rights movements developed and expanded from 1945 to 1960

Black Americans overwhelmingly approved of the Supreme Court's unanimous 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education. In resolving a lawsuit brought by Thurgood Marshall's NAACP legal team, the Court's ruling in the case prohibited public school segregation, largely on the basis of the psychological and emotional damage it inflicted on African American children. But the ruling was hampered by its implementation order of May 1955, which famously declared that public schools should desegregate "with all deliberate speed." In response, white supremacists launched a campaign across the South of "massive resistance" led by the White Citizens' Council movement and the revitalized Ku Klux Klan. This fierce opposition now had plenty of time to mobilize its forces, with lawsuits and boycotts backed by terrorism.

White protesters rallied against the integration of Little Rock schools at the Arkansas state capitol with signs comparing race mixing with communism.

Black families were hopeful for the long run but dreaded the short run, fearing violent retaliation for integration efforts. In Little Rock, Arkansas, soon after the Brown decision, 12-year-old Melba Beals was assaulted on her way home from school by a white man who yelled, "I'll show you niggers the Supreme Court can't run my life," as he tried to tear off her clothes. She fought back and got away.

When the Little Rock school board and state NAACP decided to integrate Central High School in the fall of 1957, Beals courageously signed up to go, supported by her mother and grandmother. She and eight other African American students were chosen from 100 who volunteered.

In early September 1957, Governor Orval Faubus ordered the Arkansas National Guard to block the black juniors and seniors, dubbed the "Little Rock Nine," from entering the school. Because she had not received a phone call that the Little Rock Nine were not going to go to school on the first day, 15-year-old Elizabeth Eckford was alone when she faced the white mob's cruel taunts and threats. With the guardsmen refusing to intervene on her behalf, the mobs grew in size and threat. Eckford was chased by angry whites and barely escaped the dangerous situation.

Federal judge Ronald Davies tried to counter the governor's efforts to thwart the desegregation plan, which had been two years in the making. When Davies ordered Faubus to remove the Guard, the nine children were admitted into the school, but they were treated viciously by some white students. When she felt threatened, Beals tried to escape into a gym class, but a mob led by white mothers invaded the school and came after her. "Get the nigger," a woman screamed. Another knocked her down. "She's bleeding. What do you know. Niggers bleed red blood. Let's kick the nigger." Beals ran a gantlet of punches, kicks, and spit until she got free. The other eight faced similar traumatic experiences trying to get an education. The mob was so overpowering that a scared school leader confided: "We may have to let the mob have one of these kids. . . It may be the only way out. There must be a thousand people out there, armed and coming this way."

Soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division escort African American students to Central High School in Little Rock in Sept. 1957.

All nine got out, but the attacks grew worse during the week. Though opposed to the Brown decision, President Dwight Eisenhower bowed to liberal and popular pressure and sent in the military to prevent the violence from spiraling out of control. From the Oval Office he justified his decision: "Mob rule in Little Rock menaces the very safety of the United States and the free world." Twelve hundred battle-equipped, bayonet-wielding paratroopers from the 101st Airborne Division, in 52 planeloads, descended on Central High and escorted the students to school past racist slurs and threats. Soldiers were assigned to protect each student during the school day.

Though the soldiers stayed only a few weeks, desegregation took hold by fits and starts. The Little Rock Nine made friends with some white students and broke down the resistance. However, the struggle for the individual students continued. Minnijean Brown was suspended on several occasions after incidents provoked by white students. Finally she was expelled, to the delight of many white students who adopted the slogan "One down, eight to go." Ernest Green graduated at the end of the school year. However, Governor Faubus closed the Little Rock high schools during the next school year, and politicians in other states did likewise. The court later overturned this move. Only three of the Little Rock Nine graduated from Central High; most of the others left and graduated from other schools.

The Little Rock Nine story was featured on the cover of Time magazine in October 1957, which pictured a U.S. Army paratrooper in battle gear outside the school.

Despite Brown v. Board, only small numbers of students attended integrated schools across the South, delaying progress even further. The civil rights movement had aimed to achieve full public-school integration by 1963 (even with many whites switching to private schools). But southern schools were not significantly integrated until the early 1970s, and then only under strong federal pressure. In the North, de facto segregation of neighborhoods essentially led to segregation of schools in local communities. Decades after the Little Rock Nine had made their stand, schools in the South and North were as segregated as ever because of entrenched socioeconomic divisions. Nevertheless, the process had started, because of actions by the branches of the national government but also, and perhaps more importantly, because of the courage of the Little Rock Nine and other African American students like them.

3. Thurgood Marshall was the

1. Supreme Court justice who wrote the Brown v. Board of Education (1954) decision

2. governor of Arkansas who sent the National Guard in to stop the Little Rock Nine from attending Central High School

3. lead attorney for the NAACP's legal team in the Brown case

4. federal judge who tried to block the National Guard from preventing the Little Rock Nine from entering Central High School

1. the Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

2. Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus's decision to call the National Guide to prevent the Little Rock Nine from attending Central High School

3. the central tenet of Thurgood Marshall's argument before the Supreme Court

4. President Eisenhower's justification to send American troops into Little Rock

1. Explain President Dwight Eisenhower's reaction to the incidents at Little Rock Central High School.

2. Describe the impact of the incident at Little Rock Central High School on segregation in the South.

"EXECUTIVE ORDER 10730 . . .

WHEREAS such obstruction of justice constitutes a denial of the equal protection of the laws secured by the Constitution of the United States . . .

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER, President of the United States, under and by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and Statutes of the United States, including Chapter 15 of Title 10 of the United States Code, particularly sections 332, 333 and 334 thereof, do command all persons engaged in such obstruction of justice to cease and desist therefrom, and to disperse forthwith; and

WHEREAS the command contained in that Proclamation has not been obeyed and willful obstruction of enforcement of said court orders still exists and threatens to continue: . . .

SEC. 2. The Secretary of Defense is authorized and directed to take all appropriate steps to enforce any orders of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas for the removal of obstruction of justice in the State of Arkansas with respect to matters relating to enrollment and attendance at public schools in the Little Rock School District, Little Rock, Arkansas. In carrying out the provisions of this section, the Secretary of Defense is authorized to use the units, and members thereof, ordered into the active military service of the United States."

Refer to the excerpt provided.

1. The Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

2. The Harlem Renaissance

3. The Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

4. The Montgomery Bus Boycott

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The Little Rock Nine - Bill of Rights Institute

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By the end of this section, you will: Explain how and why the civil rights movements developed and expanded from 1945 to 1960 Black Americans overwhelmingly approved of the Supreme Court's unanimous 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education.

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Essay: How The Little Rock Nine Is Important Now

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Essay: How The Little Rock Nine Is Important Now

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In 1957, the Little Rock Nine students were a group of nine African American students who had the bravery to go to Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Their enrollment at the school was after the 1954 Supreme Court decision, Brown v. Board of Education Arkansas resisted integration.

When the students made it to the school, they were immediately surrounded by angry mobs and were blocked by the Arkansas National Guard. This became so serious that President Dwight D. Eisenhower had to send federal troops to protect the students and enforce the law. The Little Rock Nine were finally able to attend classes even though they still had to deal with violence and harassment. These actions of the Little Rock Nine were important because their courage helped push the country to take steps toward ending segregation. Today, teachers use this to have discussions about racism and how students can make a difference in their communities. This lesson of the Little Rock Nine shows us that the fight for equality is not only the fight we need to make in history, but it is something that we have to continue to work toward.