They are, of course, no longer teenagers. In 1957, though, they were just that, young, courageous and about to enter history. On September 25th, 1957 the President of the United States sent in the 101st Airborne to escort nine African-American students into Little Rock Central High School to enforce the Supreme Court Decision that upheld the schools integration. The images printed and broadcast over the following few days became the genesis for other civil rights demands in the Jim Crow South. The image that most strikes my heart is that of a young, white woman, no older than 17, nearly lunging forward at her black counterpart as she screams some unimaginable insult at her back. Yet, in that same frozen, sickening moment, there is already the triumph of progress. The journey forward often begins with some strife. The difference between defeat and triumph being the dominance of fear in the former, its denial in the later. What do you think? Its Your World, Talk About It…
Note: For a great documentary on the subject, I recommend the HBO Documentary LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL: 50 YEARS LATER. There is no narration, rather, the story is told by the participants, current students of Central High and film footage shot at the time.
