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Showdown in Little Rock By USHistory.org 2016

This informational text discusses the Little Rock Nine, a group of nine exemplary black students chosen to be the first African Americans to enroll in an all-white high school in the capital of Arkansas, Little Rock. Arkansas was a deeply segregated southern state in 1954 when the Supreme Court ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. The Little Rock Crisis in 1957 details how citizens in favor of segregation tried to prevent the integration of the Little Rock Nine into a white high school. As you read, note the varied responses of Americans to the treatment of the Little Rock Nine.

[1] Three years after the Supreme Court declared race-based segregation illegal, a military showdown took place in the capital of Arkansas, Little Rock. On September 3, 1957, nine black students attempted to attend the all-white Central High School.

The students were legally enrolled in the school.

The National Association for the Advancement of "Robert F. Wagner with Little Rock students NYWTS" by Walter Colored People (NAACP) had attempted to Albertin is in the public domain. register students in previously all-white schools as early as 1955. The Little Rock School Board agreed to gradual integration, with the Superintendent Virgil Blossom submitting a plan in May of 1955 for black students to begin attending white schools in September of 1957. The School Board voted unanimously in favor of this plan, but when the 1957 school year began, the community still raged over integration. When the black students, known as the “Little Rock Nine,” attempted to enter Central High School, segregationists threatened to hold protests and physically block the students from entering the school.

Under the pretext of maintaining order but in support of the segregationists, Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus mobilized the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the Little Rock Nine from entering the school. After a federal judge declared the action illegal, Faubus removed the troops. When the students tried to enter again on September 24, they were taken into the school through a back door. Word of this spread throughout the community, and a thousand irate1 citizens stormed the school grounds. The police desperately tried to keep the angry crowd under control as concerned onlookers whisked2 the students to safety.

The nation watched all of this on television. President Eisenhower3 was compelled to act.

1. Irate (adjective): very angry 2. Whisk (verb): to move to another place very quickly 3. President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969) was President of the United States from 1953 to 1961. He is also well- known for his outstanding military service as a U.S. General during World War II. 1 [5] Eisenhower was not a strong proponent of civil rights. He feared that the Brown v. Board of Education4 Supreme Court decision could lead to an impasse5 between the federal government and the states. Now that very stalemate6 had come. The rest of the country seemed to side with the black students, and the Arkansas state government was defying7 a federal decree.8 The situation hearkened9 back to the dangerous federal-state conflicts of the 19th century that followed the end of the Civil War.10

On September 24, after the mayor of Little Rock asked President Eisenhower for help enforcing integration, Eisenhower ordered the troops of the 101st Airborne Division into Little Rock, marking the first time United States troops were dispatched to the South since Reconstruction.11 He federalized12 the Arkansas National Guard in order to remove the soldiers from Faubus’s control. For the next few months, the African American students attended school under armed supervision. Even so, they faced physical and verbal abuse from their white peers. The Little Rock Nine were instructed, just as during the pro-segregation protests, not to respond or react to these taunts.

The following year, Little Rock School District officials under the command of Faubus closed the schools to prevent integration. But in 1959, the schools were open again. Both black and white children were in attendance.

The tide was slowly turning in favor of those advocating civil rights for African Americans. An astonished America watched footage of brutish,13 white southerners mercilessly14 harassing African American children calmly walking into school, intent on getting an education. Television swayed public opinion toward integration.

In 1957, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, the first such measure since Reconstruction. The law created a permanent civil rights commission to assist black suffrage.15 The measure had little teeth16 and proved ineffective, but it paved the way for more powerful legislation in the years to come.

Showdown in Little Rock by USHistory.org is licensed under CC BY 4.0.

4. In Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to separate schools by race. 5. Impasse (noun): a situation in which no progress seems possible 6. Stalemate (noun): a disagreement in which neither side can win 7. Defy (verb): to refuse to obey 8. A federal decree is a national law, and therefore overrides any conflicting state laws. 9. Hearken (verb): to give attention to 10. The American Civil War was fought between 1861 and 1865. 11. The Reconstruction era lasted from the end of the Civil War in 1865 to 1877. It was a period of transformation for the Southern United States following their defeat and destruction in the war, and historians often consider it a failure because the South was left facing poverty and racial discrimination. 12. Federalize (verb): to cause something to be under control of the federal government 13. Brutish (adjective): cruel, violent, and stupid 14. Merciless (adjective): having or showing no mercy; very cruel or harsh 15. Suffrage (noun): the right to vote 16. little ability to work effectively or enforce itself 2 Text-Dependent Questions

Directions: For the following questions, choose the best answer or respond in complete sentences.

1. PART A: Which of the following best identifies a central idea of the text? [RI.2] A. President Eisenhower used the Little Rock crisis as an excuse to display the federal government’s power over states. B. Segregationists made solid arguments against integration in their protests that prompted many Americans to protest integration. C. The public crisis in Little Rock made many Americans determined to have the federal government enforce segregation. D. The Little Rock Nine helped break racial barriers in American education despite great opposition.

2. PART B: Which phrase from the text best supports the answer to Part A? [RI.1] A. “When the students tried to enter again on September 24, they were taken into the school through a back door. Word of this spread throughout the community, and a thousand irate citizens stormed the school grounds.” (Paragraph 3) B. “The police desperately tried to keep the angry crowd under control as concerned onlookers whisked the students to safety. The nation watched all of this on television. President Eisenhower was compelled to act.” (Paragraphs 4-5) C. “The rest of the country seemed to side with the black students, and the Arkansas state government was defying a federal decree. The situation hearkened back to the dangerous federal-state conflicts of the 19th century that followed the end of the Civil War.” (Paragraph 5) D. “The following year, Little Rock School District officials under the command of Faubus closed the schools to prevent integration. But in 1959, the schools were open again. Both black and white children were in attendance.” (Paragraph 7)

3. PART A: Which statement best describes the relationship between the Arkansas state [RI.3] government and the federal government in the text? A. Arkansas’ governor resisted federal laws on integration because of his strong belief in state’s rights regarding integration. B. Arkansas’ governor defied federal laws on integration because of local segregationists’ deeply held beliefs on race. C. Eisenhower’s delayed response in the Little Rock crisis was caused by his fear of violent protests protected by the Arkansas government. D. Eisenhower was quick to respond in Little Rock because he wanted to set an example with the Arkansas government on how states shouldn’t ignore federal law.

3 4. PART B: Which quote from the text best supports your answer to Part A? [RI.1] A. “Under the pretext of maintaining order but in support of the segregationists, Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus mobilized the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the Little Rock Nine from entering the school.” (Paragraph 3) B. “The situation hearkened back to the dangerous federal-state conflicts of the 19th century that followed the end of the Civil War.” (Paragraph 5) C. “He feared that the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision could lead to an impasse between the federal government and the states.” (Paragraph 5) D. “Eisenhower ordered the troops of the 101st Airborne Division into Little Rock, marking the first time United States troops were dispatched to the South since Reconstruction.” (Paragraph 6)

5. How does the subject shift in paragraph 4 contribute to the development of the [RI.5] [RI.3] central ideas of the text? Cite evidence from the text in your answer.

4 Discussion Questions

Directions: Brainstorm your answers to the following questions in the space provided. Be prepared to share your original ideas in a class discussion.

1. Why do you think that the Little Rock Nine was instructed not to react to physical and verbal abuse from community members and fellow students? How did this impact their image and the integration movement?

2. Schools today are all legally integrated; however, due to communities that are segregated based on cultural or financial reasons (rather than legal reasons), many schools are predominantly white or predominantly black or predominantly Latino. What do you think is the impact of this unintentional segregation on students? How do you think communities or lawmakers can work to create more diverse school environments?

3. In your opinion, what enabled the Little Rock Nine to overcome adversity? What lessons can we draw from these nine students today?

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