Little Rock Nine
History has been documented in words and pictures. With the ability to capture historic events through photography we have come to see some iconic photos over time. One photo that captured the struggle of African American students in the late 1950s is the one pictured above. Elizabeth Eckford was one of the first nine African American students to be integrated into an all white high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. The brave students were met with hatred from those who opposed integration. Elizabeth Eckford was one of the first students to arrive in hopes of entering Central High School in Little Rock. Even though Brown v Board of Education made it unconstitutional for schools to be segregated, the nine students who wanted to attend the school were met with the National Guard in an attempt to keep the school segregated. It was not until days later when President Eisenhower ordered an army escort that the students were able to enter the school.
If you take a moment to look at the picture above you can see the hatred in the women’s faces. The women who are pictured to the right of Elizabeth Eckford have a death stare on her. Not only can you see the hate radiate from their eyes, you can hear the prejudice thoughts. Elizabeth Eckford was only 15 years old when she had to face this horrible situation. She was just a teenager and had to be brave enough to walk in the midst of all the hatred. It is unimaginable to think about what was going through Elizabeth Eckford’s mind at the time the photo was taken. The fear that she must have felt was not enough to keep her away from fighting for what was right. All nine students who faced this opposition in Little Rock came back to try and enter the school even with armed opposition. They easily could have given up, and stayed away from the high school, but they knew they were entitled to education without segregation. Although the photo has so much hate coming from it, Elizabeth Eckford represents the brave men and women who put themselves out there for equality. I think today we are too quick to forget that situations like this happened, and not so long ago. Photos like this exist to remind us of the past, all the good and bad as long as we learn from the bad to make a better future.
