1. Civil Rights and Schools
Little Rock, Arkansas 1957

2. Southern states were against desegregation
Individual states tried to ignore the Supreme Court’s decision of 1955
Argued they had states rights to keep schools segregated
White school
Black school

3. The crisis came to a head at Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957…
The state of Arkansas decided it would desegregate its schools slowly.

4. 1st school in Arkansas to be desegregated was the Central High School
The Governor of Arkansas Orville Faubus was against integration

5. How did Faubus stop Black children attending the school?
He sent state soldiers to surround the school
He said they were there to stop racist violence but the soldiers did not let Black children in the school

6. Faubus was ordered to remove the state soldiers by…
Federal government (main government)
Faubus removed the troops but knew desegregation would be stopped because …
a large White mob was also surrounding the school

7. 1st Black student to attend Central High School was called Elizabeth Eckford

8. That night I couldn’t sleep. Next morning I was the first one to get up. As I walked to the school a large crowd moved closer to me, calling me names. My knees started to shake and I wondered if I would make it to school. The crowd moved closer and closer. Somebody started yelling. ‘Lynch her, lynch her.’ I tried to see a friendly face in the mob. I saw an old lady. She looked kind but then she spat on me. They started shouting. ‘No nigger bitch is going to get into our school. Get out of here.’

9. Eventually the President of the USA, Dwight Eisenhower sent 1000 soldiers to Little Rock to make sure the children were safe
Soldiers stayed in Little Rock for a year, even patrolling the school corridors to make sure children were safe
Events in Little Rock, Arkansas, attracted world wide attention to the Civil Rights Movement

10. The importance of Little Rock
The beginning of educational de-segregation
Support from the NAACP; highlighting discrimination
Presidential involvement – Arkansas National Guard taken under federal control
Media involvement – journalists/ cameras – worldwide attention
Civil Rights Act of 1957 is introduced
Proved it would be difficult to achieve full civil rights in the USA.
NOTE

11. However, it was not fully successful because…..
Supreme Court decision on desegregation only applies to education – by 1968, 68% of all Southern schools remain segregated
Civil Rights campaign continues to bring about desegregation in other areas of society.
NOTE

12. Source A Eventually the President of the USA had to
intervene. He sent 1000 soldiers to Little Rock
to make sure children were safe. The soldiers
stayed in Little Rock for a year and they even
patrolled the school corridors to make sure
children were safe. Naturally, these events
attracted worldwide attention to the Civil
Rights Movement and embarrassed the
American Government.
How fully does Source A explain the importance of Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957 to the Civil Rights Movement? marks