The Tiger, October 3,
1997
Integration Goes Forward at CHS
Nine Negro students attended Little Rock Central High School last
week for the first time in history. They arrived at the school Wednesday, September 25,
accompanied by crack paratroopers of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division. An Army
station wagon carried the students to the front entrance of the building while an Army
helicopter circled overhead and 350 armed paratroopers stood at parade rest around the
building.
Never before had Federal troops been used to enforce integration
in a public school.
Third Attempt Made
This was the third attempt the Negro students had made to attend
classes at Central. For three weeks the Arkansas National Guard had patrolled the school
on orders of Governor Orval Faubus. Then on September 20 the troops were withdrawn by the
Governor after the Federal Court had issued an injunction requiring him to withdraw the
troops.
All was quiet over the week-end at CHS, but on Monday, September
23, eight of the Negro students enrolled at Central. Uncontrolled violence grew so swiftly
in the area surrounding the school campus that city law enforcement officers decided it
was wise to withdraw the Negro students shortly after noon on the same day.
Federal Troops Arrive
President Eisenhower took unprecedented action on September 24,
when he called the Arkansas National Guard into active military service to deal with the
Little Rock school integration crisis. President Eisenhower also authorized Secretary of
Defense Wilson to use regular Army troops in addition to the National Guard Units.
Accordingly, about 1,000 paratroopers of the 101st Airborne
division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, began arriving at the Little Rock Air Force Base on
the evening of September 24. They immediately took up positions around the school.
General Advises Students
The Department of the Army designated Major General Edwin A.
Walker chief of the Arkansas Military District.
As commander of the troops in the Little Rock area, Major General
Walker addressed the student body and explained his position clearly.
All Quiet Within
Halls were quiet within the schools as the Negro students
entered. They proceeded to their pre-arranged classes and school work went on just about
as usual. At least two dozen soldiers without bayonets patrolled the halls.
Many Central students were absent; of the 2,000 enrolled, about
1,250 attended classes. On Friday the attendance was back up to 1450. At press time it was
almost normal.
EDITORIALS
The Price We Pay
by Co-editors Georgia Dortch and Jane Emery
On the 25th of September, with few words and fixed bayonets,
crack paratroopers of the U.S. Army quickly dispersed the crowds that had gathered around
Central and carried out the court order for integration. No violent incidents, as had
previously occurred, were reported.
No matter what our personal opinions may be, we cannot be proud
of the violence that occurred around our school that made it necessary for the use of
these Federal troops. Looking back on this year will probably be with regret that
integration could not have been accomplished peacefully, without incident, without
publicity.
But the future remains.
And with the future remain many questions. Will there be more
violence? How long will troop-protected education be necessary? Will our own educations be
retarded?
The only answer to all these questions is for each individual to
maintain a sensible, peaceful neutrality; to accept the situation without demonstration,
no matter what personal views are entertained; and to make these, your years in Little
Rock Central High School, the happiest and most fruitful of your academic education.
EDITORIAL
Let's Keep the Record
Straight
Just for the sake of the record, let us remind our readers that
less than 1% of the population of Little Rock was in the crowd of people gathered in front
of CHS when school opened Monday morning, September 23. In addition to that, many of the
people in the crowd were not citizens of Little Rock. There was at no time any significant
disturbance in the classrooms of the high school. From over the country there were a few
photographers and reporters apparently seeking for a juicy morsel in the tense situation.
Again it is the case of where a minority group controlled the
actions and even the thoughts of the majority. Wouldn't it be better for parents,
townsmen, and strangers to let the law take its course and seek a remedy of the situation
in some other way?
Principal's Message
Character, Citizenship Lead
to Student Success
By J.W. Matthews
Today our society is being challenged in many ways. Communism is
not our only enemy. Ignorance and selfishness are equally great dangers and the only
protection against all three is that the young people now in our schools meet these
challenges and protect those great privileges of freedom and human dignity, payable only
in a democratic society.
In most cases the character and knowledge which is so necessary
for future successful citizenship in our country is a direct outgrowth of school
citizenship. Character is shown by what people do and very few change overnight: so what
students do now in school they will probably be doing in adult life. Character and
knowledge go hand in hand; one without the other is harmful, sometimes dangerous.
So, students, when you hear us talking about student behavior in
the corridors, assembly or cafeteria, of cooperation with your teachers in your class
work, of thinking about the other person in your daily contacts at school, of good
sportsmanship at athletic events, of safety precautions around the school, and many other
such topics, you realize we are trying to set up a situation where you may secure
knowledge and develop dependable traits of character through practicing good citizenship
in school.
Schools used to think that rigid discipline and text books
produced the character and knowledge that future citizenship would require.
The modern school values this heritage but places much emphasis
on the development of behavior patterns required in our democratic society and does not
take for granted that pupils will develop into good citizens merely because of contact
with discipline and text books.
General Explains Function of
Troops
"I am here to execute the President's orders. My men are
well trained and determined to carry out orders," said General Edward A. Walker,
chief of the Arkansas Military District, to the student body at a special assembly
September 24.
Ralph Brodie, president of the student body, called the assembly
to order, and Lynn Finch gave the Bible reading. The speaker was introduced by Principal
Jess Matthews.
General Walker explained that the Supreme Court order banning
segregation, issued in 1955, left up to state and local communities the process of
determining how to integrate and how quickly. The Little Rock School Board presented its
plan of gradual integration to the federal district court, which gave the solution its
approval. Therefore, this integration plan became the law that must be executed.
"You are well intentioned, law-abiding citizens. You need
not be afraid of the soldiers," remarked General Walk, "as they will not
interfere with the school or its plans." He concluded that those interfering,
loitering, or attempting to assemble in large groups would be removed and subject to laws
of the city. Soldiers will not bother law-abiding citizens and the only thing that they
expect of students and Little Rock residents is co-operation for the benefit of all.
In response to the general's plea, President Ralph Brodie
reminded everyone, "Central High students are proud of their athletic and scholastic
records. We will be and are good citizens."
Soldiers Work for Order; Leave as Soon as
Possible
By Henry Griffith
There are many sides to the integration situation. It would
probably be correct to say that there are almost as many sides as there are people. But
one side seems to be almost unknown: that is the side of the 101st Airborne.
The Screaming Eagles is a proud group of fighting men, who were
reactivated as a unit of the United States fighting machine only a year ago. Already their
reputation as a fighting group and a group constantly in readiness for action in any part
of the globe is outstanding. It is a reputation that should make every American proud.
But a few people seem to forget. They called the men of the 101st
by every name imaginable, and screamed "Hitler tactics" and "Budapest
oppression" when these troops were sent to Little Rock. They forget that these men,
many of them no older than the high school students they guard, were ordered to Central
High by superiors they have sworn to obey, and to protect people they are sworn to
protect.
People forget that these men are ready to fly to any part of the
earth to defend--perhaps to die for--democracy and the people of the United States.
Some people cannot see these troops as men with families who only
want to restore peace to Little Rock and return to their own homes-they see them only as
outsiders, uniformed foreigners, who have come to cram integration down their throats.
Captain Barker Talks
Captain Jack Edmund Barker is in charge of public relations and
is with the intelligence of the 101st here in Little Rock. A friendly, soft spoken, family
man from South Carolina, he drifted into the Central High Journalism Department, where he
explained the story of his Screaming Eagles, and gave this reporter a better understanding
of their position.
When this reporter commented on the fact that the number of
troops around the school had decreased, Capt. Barker's face broke into a smile and he
said, "So you noticed that that's what we're trying to do. We want to restore order
here with the minimum amount of force and then to withdraw as quickly as possible. We
don't want to be obnoxious to the people. These boys (the younger soldiers) want to
be--are even eager to be friendly with the students. We don't want to be foreboding.
That's why we're trying to slip into the background as much as possible."
This is a condensation of an interview that lasted two hours, but
it is basically the 101st side of the question. They're somebody's husband, somebody's
son, somebody's boyfriend, and they want to be friendly with the students of Central High;
but they were sent here to do a job with a minimum amount of force and as quickly as
possible.
But people seem to forget--they're people, too. |
