School Segregation & Desegregation

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African-American woman wearing dark colored dress with double strain shell necklace
Daisy Lee Gatson Bates (1914?–1999)
Daisy Lee Gatson Bates was a mentor to the Little Rock Nine, the African American students who integrated Cent...
Older African American man and woman at dinner table with younger African American boys and girls
Melba Pattillo Beals (1941–)
Melba Pattillo Beals made history as a member of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African American students invo...
Desegregation of Bentonville Schools
Bentonville (Benton County) was one of the earliest school districts in Arkansas to admit African American stu...
White woman formally dressed smiling in earrings pearl necklace brooch ribbon bracelet holding gloves fur
Vivion Mercer Lenon Brewer (1900–1991)
Vivion Mercer Lenon Brewer is best known for helping to found the Women’s Emergency Committee to Open Our Sc...
poster titled "Conspiracy at Little Rock to Negro-ize Travelers Baseball Team" with image of letter written by segregationist Amis Guthridge to Arkansas Travelers manager Ray Winder
Capital Citizens' Council (CCC)
The Capital Citizens’ Council (CCC) was one of many similar organizations established throughout the South t...
white man in helmet with gun faces group of African American teens
Desegregation of Central High School
aka: Crisis at Central High
aka: Little Rock Desegregation Crisis
In its 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas decision,...
Portrait of white man in suit and tie
Desegregation of Charleston Schools
Much has been written about the Little Rock School District desegregation in 1957. However, the Charleston Pub...
Committee to Retain Our Segregated Schools (CROSS)
Formed in 1959 to bolster the segregationist cause in the aftermath of the desegregation of Central High Schoo...
White man in suit and tie seated at desk
Desegregation of Des Arc Schools
The 1966 desegregation of schools at Des Arc (Prairie County) was accomplished under the leadership of Arkansa...
Angry white crowd surrounding young African-American girl sitting on bench with white woman talking to her
Elizabeth Ann Eckford (1941–)
Elizabeth Ann Eckford made history as a member of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African American students who...
Desegregation of Fayetteville Schools
Between 1954 and 1965, Fayetteville (Washington County) underwent the gradual integration of all primary and s...
Young African-American man in graduation robe with cap
Ernest Gideon Green (1941–)
Ernest Gideon Green made history as the only senior of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African-American student...
Desegregation of Hot Springs Schools
Hot Springs (Garland County), a tourist town, had one of the largest school districts in Arkansas at the time ...
Group school photo with matching white girls and one black girl on bleachers below flag
Desegregation of Hoxie Schools
During the summer and autumn of 1955, proponents and opponents of school integration across America were watch...
Black man in woven suit jacket pattern tie by doorway profile view
Silas Herbert Hunt (1922–1949)
Silas Herbert Hunt was a veteran of World War II and a pioneer in the integration of higher education in Arkan...
Group of African Americans standing in a church
Gloria Cecelia Ray Karlmark (1942–)
Gloria Cecelia Ray Karlmark made history as a member of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African-American studen...
white man in helmet with gun faces group of African American teens
Carlotta Walls LaNier (1942–)
Carlotta Walls LaNier made history as the youngest member of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African-American s...
Mixed group of people reflected as their younger selves in pool with multistory building behind them with text above that
Little Rock Nine
The Little Rock Nine were the nine African American students involved in the desegregation of Little Rock Cent...
Two teachers walking down an empty school hallway with lockers and a water fountain
Lost Year
“The Lost Year” refers to the 1958–59 school year in Little Rock (Pulaski County), when all the city’s...
Desegregation of Lower Arkansas River Valley Schools
Desegregation of schools in the Lower Arkansas River Valley began primarily because the one area school to whi...
Young African-American man and older African-American man with suitcase in suit and tie
Christopher Columbus Mercer Jr. (1924–2012)
Christopher Columbus Mercer Jr. was an advisor to Daisy Bates during the 1957 desegregation of Little Rock Cen...
Election flyer reading "Do you want negroes in our schools?" by "The Mothers' League"
Mothers' League of Central High School
Inferior in numbers and public standing only to its sponsor, the Capital Citizens’ Council (CCC), the Mother...
three African American men stand in front of stone steps leading to multistory stone building
North Little Rock Six
The North Little Rock Six were six African American students who attempted to desegregate North Little Rock Hi...
Desegregation of Ozark Schools
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board of Education school desegregation decision, Ozark (Fr...
Panel of American Women
The Little Rock Panel of American Women was organized in 1963 by Sara Alderman Murphy. It was based on the nat...
White man in black framed glasses in shirt and tie
James Wesley Pruden Sr. (1908–1979)
James Wesley Pruden Sr., a Southern Baptist minister, was first chaplain and then president of the Little Rock...
African-American man with beard in suit and tie speaking into microphone at lectern
Terrence James Roberts (1941–)
Terrence James Roberts made history as a member of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African-American students wh...
Irene Gaston Samuel (1915–1999)
Irene Gaston Samuel is best known for her work with the Women’s Emergency Committee to Open Our Schools (WEC...
Group school photo with matching white girls and one black girl on bleachers below flag
School Desegregation Timeline
The information below is compiled primarily from regular reports on school desegregation published in the Ark...
Two black men standing and one seated in library wearing suits jackets and ties gazing downwards
Six Pioneers
The Six Pioneers were the first six African American students to attend the University of Arkansas School of L...
White man in suit and white woman in "This teacher was purged" newspaper advertisements
Stop This Outrageous Purge (STOP)
A hastily formed organization created during the “Lost Year” of 1958–59—in which Little Rock (Pulaski ...
Round metal marker with words
Jefferson Allison Thomas (1942–2010)
Jefferson Allison Thomas made history as a member of the Little Rock Nine, the nine African-American students ...