African American Youth’s School Hardships and Accomplishments

1. African American Youth’s School Hardships and Accomplishments Presented to You, Via Eric Schichlein, Marisa Moore, Hunter Hedgepeth, and Emme Flores

2. What were the changes caused by youth in schools during the civil rights movement? African American adolescents had it hard during the early 20th century. They were heavily discriminated, but not as bad as adults, but still. Young African Americans were forced to go to separate schools away from the white children. They received an inferior education and bad support. So they fought back.

3. Nine Little Rocks From Little Rock, Arkansas Minnijean Brown (Born 1941) Elizabeth Eckford (Born 1941) Ernest Green (Born 1941) Thelma Mothershed (Born 1940) Melba Patillo (Born 1941) Gloria Ray (Born 1942) Terrence Roberts (Born 1941) Jefferson Thomas (Born 1942 and died September 5th, 2010-67 years old-of pancreatic cancer) Carlotta Walls (Born 1942).

4. The Little Rock Nine The Little Rock Nine started as an insignificant, poorly educated, African American band consisting of nine students trying to get into Little Rock High School in 1957. Eight arrived in one car, Elizabeth Eckford, so poor that she lacked a telephone to receive a carpool plan, so she arrived on foot, alone. They oversaw and experienced bad times at the school. Patillo had acid thrown in the face, he was beaten and kicked. The group also experienced being pushed down the stairs, and beaten. Minnijean Brown retaliated, therefore, expelled after an even tougher ordeal getting into the school. They were the first African American children to ever enter a white school and many people did not like the idea. The governor didn’t approve and even sent in troops to oppose them, but President Dwight D. Eisenhower fought for them, sending his troops to help them into the school!

5. Little Rock Nine Fun Facts • Eckford and Thomas joined the Army. Thomas fought in Vietnam. • Green, after being the only one to graduate from the school, became the assistant secretary to the Federal Department of Labor under President Carter. • The group got an invitation to President Obama’s Inauguration. • Jefferson was the first Little Rock to die (of) pancreatic cancer on September 5th, 2010 at the age of 67. • On September 23, 1957, the City Police had to escort them through an angry mob into the school, but failed.

6. Linda Brown’s Unfair Education Situation Linda Brown was one of many unfairly treated students during the Civil Rights Movement. She was poorly educated because the schools were given a very few amount of supplies, for instance, every $150.00 spent on a white child, $50.00 were spent on African American children’s school needs. Oliver Brown, Linda’s father, sick and tired of it all especially since that the nearest high school wouldn’t even except Linda, went to court when Linda was 17 years old. Linda Brown and her family in front of their house.

7. Oliver Brown’s Case Since no court had ever overturned cases like Brown’s, the state courts thought there was no problem treating the African American children different then whites. The state courts also said that this way of treating the kids would basically help them get over the fact that African American’s would never be treated the same. So Oliver Brown lost against the Board of Education. After that, he went to the NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). Oliver Brown

8. NAACP The NAACP was formed in the early 1900’s. It’s goal was to combat racial tensions and discriminations. It’s lawyer’s were up and fighting for African American’s rights. Out of hundreds of cases that they were involved in such as supporting Rosa Parks when she was arrested for breaking an unfair bus rule, one stood out particularly. It was Oliver Brown’s case otherwise know as ‘Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education.’

9. The Supreme Court When the NAACP’s lawyers working for Oliver Brown lost at state level, they took it to The Supreme Court where the jury voted for the equality of the children, 9-0.

10. Desegregation In the end schools were desegregated and huge steps were made to provide equal education to people of all races. Still there were problems for African Americans. They were still beaten and bullied. Even today racial tensions abound in the U.S. But still this whole idea of equal education was revolutionary.

11. Bibliography • http://library.thinkquest.org/J0112391/brown_v__board_of_education.htm • http://www.infoplease.com/spot/bhmheroes1.html • http://www.history.com/topics/central-high-school-integration • http://www.history.com/topics/brown-v-board-of-education-of-topeka

12. Book Resource Civil Rights Movement by ErrinBanting Publisher: Weigl Publisher Inc. in NY city

13. Picture’s Citations • Linda Brown with her parents and sister in front of . 1954. How Stuff Works. Web. 7 Mar. 2011. <http://history.howstuffworks.com/american-history/civil-rights-movement2.htm>. • Oliver Brown. Jim Crow Era . Web. 7 Mar. 2011. <http://nubiansioux.tripod.com/negro/index.blog/1043686/brown-v-board-of-education/>. • Michelle Obama NAACP Speech. deskofbrian.com. Web. 1 Mar. 2011. <http://deskofbrian.com/wp-content/uploads/NAACP-Logo.jpg>. • Little Rock, Arkansas. civilrightstravel.com. Web. 2 Mar. 2011. <http://civilrightstravel.com/img/lr4.jpg>. • The Supreme Court. http/www.elcivics.com. Web. 1 Mar. 2011. <www.elcivics.com/el_civics_history_supreme_co...>.