Inequality ravaged African Americans for years. An explosion of fire hoses, police dogs, tear gas and heavy batons are inches to the miles of overcoming. A woman who refused to move to the back of an Alabama bus ignited a spark, but the fire had long been burning. Thousand of unheralded men and women sculpted the jagged rock of American equality. From an approach of gradual assimilation to a dream declared on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, the Everest of equality proves to be a possible climb.
“It’s like a ladder,” said Jon Busch, US History teacher, “things happened with a series of events, not just in a vacuum.” If there were a clear beginning, it would be Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. The judicial turning point dismantled the legal basis for racial segregation in schools and other facilities. It was not simply about children and education, but an end to discrimination, prejudice and stereotype as a legal practice. Three years after Brown, integration in schools was met with snarling opposition.
In his own words, Arkansas governor Orval Faubus said “segregation now, segregation tomorrow and segregation forever.” With the aid of the 101st Airborne, the Little Rock Nine insisted otherwise. Initially, the group of nine students was prevented from entering racially segregated Little Rock Central High School. Silencing critics on his inaction, President Dwight D. Eisenhower deployed troops that recently fought in World War II to escort the students amidst violent protesters. Not just any set of soldiers, but the 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army, which previously fought on the shores of Normandy. While the streets overflowed with hate-a Faubus installed National Guard-and while the shadows of troops were felt, nine students carried their books to class. The Double V Campaign rooted in “Democracy: Victory at Home, Victory Abroad” was becoming slowly realized.
“Equality is a continual process that everyone has to work on,” said Mark Carson, US History teacher. When Rosa Parks declined to give up her bus seat to a white man, she did know that a bus boycott would follow, rippling up and down the segregated South. Close to one year, blacks walked as near empty buses wasted fuel. The ensuing struggle resulted in a US Supreme Court decision that declared Alabama laws requiring segregated buses unconstitutional.
“Eisenhower enforcing the [Little Rock] Nine was a setting stage for the movement,” said Busch. Previously, Civil Rights leader, A. Philip Randolph had been instrumental in convincing President Franklin D. Roosevelt to integrate the federal workforce in 1941. To inject political pressure, Randolph launched a March on Washington Movement that threatened to bring 100,000 African Americans to the nation’s capital. After several drafts and six days before the march was to take place, Roosevelt appeased him by signing an executive order, which allowed African Americans to fill lucrative jobs that were opening up in preparation for World War II. “For most of us, we remember that racism is taught,” said Busch.