Desegregation ripped through the American South in 1957 when Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus ordered National Guard troops to prevent nine black teenagers (dubbed the “Little Rock Nine”) from entering Little Rock’s Central High School while President Dwight Eisenhower sent military troops to guard them from an angry mob of whites outside the school. Today, Little Rock Central High, though 60% black and 40% white, still struggles with educational equity.
Natives of Little Rock, filmmakers Brent and Craig Renaud explore the mark of the 50th anniversary of the famous “Integration Crisis of 1957,” in the the documentary by following present-day Central High students and faculty both in and out of school, along with community leaders and one of the original “Little Rock Nine,” who reflects on how much – and how little – has evolved since she courageously crossed the school’s steps nearly half a century ago.
Don’t miss this eye-opening documentary when Little Rock Central High: 50 Years Later premieres on September 25th (TONIGHT) at 8 p.m.—only on HBO! Another exclusive clip after the cut!
Thanks for posting this. (I actually was thinking about this subject not too long ago when I was reading a book about civil rights).
Watching things such as this bother me not necessarily for the the fact that issues of race still exist but for the fact that people still hold on to the hope that things will get better. The question that folks fail to answer is how can you fix something that was built broke? Unfortunately the only way for a civilization such as this to change is to burn it, repent and start over from scratch, because there is no way the blood the cries from the ground will ever let this nation see true greatness. All this nation will have for a fleeting moment in history is monetary prosperity, anything else is asking for too much. Nothing made with hate will bring forth love. This may sound harsh, but it is a reality that needs to be dealt with, we have accumulated too much corruption over the years to think we won’t have to pay, we are the New Rome.
#10….Thank You! I was just about to post the same idea. I live in New York, so I think about Harlem and what a mess it is, and how black folks own less today than they did in the early 1900s. When integration began in the 60s , blacks started going downtown to support white businesses and left behind their own mom and pop stores, and now blacks in Harlem have no political or economic clout. And don’t get me started on the school system. Jews did it the best, as far as taking care of their own…and it’s not labeled racist. We would do far better not worrying about who doesn’t want to sit next to us, and deal with improving our schools for our children and having Economic Equality…Forget the rest…Once that foundation is solid, respect follows.
#60…Who cares about having inter-racial relationships..How does that help the cause! What that is is a smoke screen, dealing with little issues like that, makes people thing they have overcome, b/c whites and blacks are screwing openly…Whites (men) have been having relations (raping black women) with black people since slavery….
Lastly, where do some of you folks live that you always seem so surprised that racism and discrimination still exists? When exactly was that emancipated?
64-
You’re missing the whole point of my argument. It’s all about having the same rights and abilities as everyone else. Interracial relationships were banned because we were seen as the lesser race.
That documentary attempted to be a testament to the “Little Rock 9″ but it ended up being an indictment of not only the “Little Rock 9″ but the entire ill-fated civil rights movement. What the blacks that champion that integrationist mentality should be able to answer but can’t is why, in 2007, all those 14 and 15 year old black teenagers were still saying the things that they were saying if integration was a success? If the contention is that blacks have an inferiority complex, then what is the source of that complex? Why did every black boy, except the house negro in training that bragged about living around whites, have such an apathetic outlook to their future? The documentary was interesting because it showed all the different dynamics of the racial issue in America. There were the young black men that saw no way out other than sports or gangs, the white kids that viewed the black kids with disdain, and the caucasian teachers that had to force themselves to appear to care about the fate of black children.
That sister at the end, Littlejean or whatever her name was, was the most pathetic in my opinion. Instead of her being disgusted at the lack of resolve in the black community, poor housing and skewed educational curriculums, the violence in the black community, and the rampant self-hate in the black community, the only thing that she noticed is that the blacks and whites sat opposite each other in the classroom. Here it is in 2007 and she looks at a classroom that has basically segregated itself and she still is trying to force people together. Her daughter at the end of the program obviously gives away that Littlejean had her child by a caucasian man which explains her mentality.
@55
What makes the opinions of the black people that want to build upwards form their communities ignorant? Hopefully more than the fact that you disagree, lol. The cold, hard fact of the matter is that blacks that believe in integration have absolutely NO STATISTICS to verify or corroborate their beliefs. None. As a matter of fact, since integration and the government sponsored crack epidemic, the only statistics that there are regarding the black community are damning. This is why you people get so frustrated that other black people will not justify success as working or living amongst caucasians. You would rather get angry and call other blacks “ignorant” rather than admit that the “Martin Luther King dream” is a facade.
@58
The “white abolitionists” had nothing to do with why blacks are not still in slavery, lol. Blacks are not still in slavery because the Most High deemed that it was time for that portion of our captivity to end. When you research the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln, you’ll realize that the freedom of blacks was the least of the concerns of America at that time. The plan was to release the slaves and ultimately send us back to Africa. Abraham Lincoln himself, the “president that freed the slaves”, lol, was known to refer to blacks as “n*ggers”, when speaking before the U.S. Senate. You can read that, and much more in a book called “Forced into Glory”, by Lerone Bennett.
@Lisa
Harlem is finished sis. I live in New York as well and the developments that the white man is implementing in Harlem are going to force all the blacks and hispanics in Harlem and Washington Heights up into the Bronx. There has, and never will be a case of blacks and whites co-existing together peacefully on a city-wide basis, or even community-wide for that matter.
@ JUDAH how can you call that young man a” house negro in training “? Thats like calling someone who “speaks well ” white. And to me that is part of the problem.
A lot of black kids unfortunately “Dumb Down” themselves because of statements like yours Judah… “house negro” Please you probably never been in a room of successful blacks in your life.. your idea of success are entertainers and ball players I bet. You need to change your circle!!
@68
No disrespect to you, but the problem that blacks have is exactly what you assumed I was referring to when I called him a house negro in training. It has nothing to do with his neighborhood, him speaking proper english, or anything like that because there are house negroes in the depths of the hood. I was referring to the way he continued to mention that he lived around whites, as if that certifies some form of present or future success. It was funny when his white friends got into the vehicle and the white boy put the rap CD on and they both started to do the snap dance. That; to me, showed that the things that bring black and white people together, i.e. sports and entertainment, are superficial. There is no real bond and when those white boys in his vehicle get to a certain age, they will realize that but the black boy probably never will. That is why we’re “behind”. There is a culture of success for white children while only individual blacks “succeed” based on their upbringing, or just being gifted from the Most High with a strong spirit.
@69
What is a “successful black”? What is that? Define that for me. As a matter of fact define intelligence. Now you read my entire post and the only thing that you could cleave onto was what I said about the house negro in training because that was the only thing based on opinion. Everything else was based on fact so your stupid ass couldn’t gainsay that. Since we’re speculating though, I’ll say you’re a house negro and you’re upset because I said something about one of your own, lol.
Judah.. How old are you? The reason I am asking this is because the Highschool friends you have will more than likely become just that “highschool friends”. You may truely only bond with one of them. Him embracing the fact that he is comfortable in a “white” and “black” environment to me is something I wish a lot of our kids would take advantage of.
@72
Yes, because of the mentality that you have. My question is, when are black children going to become comfortable in black environments? They are not at the moment, as that documentary portrayed. Now, instead of addressing the honest feelings that these children have, you choose to force your idealism on them. You’re not concerned about their feelings because you have the same attitude that the boy already has and is rapidly developing, that success is assimiliation with whites. It’s pathetic.
SUCH HATEFUL PEOPLE. EVERY WHITE PERSON IS NOT RACIST ! WE NEED TO STOP BLAMING EVERYTHING AND EVEYBODY FOR OUR SHORT COMING. ITS ALWAYS THE WHITE MANS FAULT OUR KIDS ARE NOT EDUCATED,OR THAT WE ARE LIVING IN POOR ENVIORMENTS OR CANT GET ANYWHERE. STOP ! ITS OUR OWN FAULTS. WE NEED TO DO BETTER . POOR PARENTING AT ITS BEST BUT THAT THE WHITE MANS FAULT TO .
#66 I didn’t miss the point of your argument, it’s just short-sighted…People are always going to have opinions, perhaps judgments against one another, especially based of of skin color.. So how does dating one or two of them change the black communities outcome, enrich, or insight progress. We have always had interracial relationships…and blacks are still struggling. The point is to have economic equality and opporunities.
@73
Thats the problem ….Some black kids are comfortable in their enviornemt and affraid to venture out. Thats why I liked the profile of that girl Angelica.
@76
That’s the point. Why are the black children scared for? They were not scared when they were learning amongst each other prior to integration. They didn’t aspire to be entertainers, they aspired to vocations that were essential to building a strong community. Integrationists do not examine the dynamics of this society. They are too mesmerized by white America to ask “why” so they spend all their time castigating the black people that don’t think like society tells them they should think. What some people don’t grasp is that everyone doesn’t have the same dream and everyone doesn’t have to have the same dream.
Well we agree to disagree Judah. nice posting with you. The only point of yours I agree with is everybody has different dreams. God didn’t put me here to settle. Even if I am a sucessful black women I know the Lord doesn’t want me to sit on my success but to mentor and to continue to grow in faith and in his blessing that he planted in me.
@78
To each his or her own sis. No disrespect to you but I asked you some basic questions and you could not anwser one. Are you a “successful black woman”? What’s the criteria for that? I’d have more respect for that statement if you just said that you’re a successful woman because at least then there’d be some consistency to your mindset. Honestly, once you believe in and partake in the “American dream” and you essentially believe that “color doesn’t matter”, what’s the point of defining yourself by your nationality or race? Just go all the way with it. The fact of the matter is that you can’t go all the way with it because the white man will not accept you. So, instead of you acknowledging that, you choose to spaz out on the blacks that know that they will never be accepted by whites because we’re not supposed to be accepted by whites. We’re supposed to accept each other.
That’s another issue. The people that “mentor” or “teach” the youth can only teach them to love the majority because that is all they know. That’s step one to the American Dream. Then, once again, people wonder why these black children have such low self-esteem and a defeatist attitude. If all they see is “white, white, white”, how do you expect them to think? Then, if you teach them about black, you’re a “racist”, lol. When they enter these AP classes, like the young lady that you mentioned did, they get flooded with caucasian authors, historical figures, and playwrights to the point where it’s impossible to not be indoctrinated. So it’s damned if you do seek to excel and damned if you don’t, depending on your outlook.
Okay Judah. Peace
Cosign Judah. I don’t have HBO so I didn’t get to see this but you made some good points.
LMAO @ you running that lady away .
@Tammy
Sis, she was finished before she started. I love these people that try to come at me hard with their transparent nonsense. She was ready to have it out in post 69 and she calmed down with each post as she realized that she didn’t have a leg to stand on. Believe or not, as low as the test grades are that these young black children get, the majority of them know that these “American Dream” people are full of it. That’s why the children are so apathetic. You can partake in higher educational institutions here in America without bowing down. Certain people cannot grasp that.
No Judah didn’t run this lady away she just realized that we disagree.
i don’t regret that my forefathers participated in integration nor support it but as of now i don’t see the big deal about integration as a 19 yr old black male.
who went to a all black elementary,middle school and high school now hbcu i don’t see the big deal about going to school or hanging around with whites. we have our own schools,business we need to increase them not increase our participation with white people.
thats just retarded black people need to forget about white people altogether as of now and think about our own and helping build up our communities not if you don’t go to school with whites you want be successful or have an ok life.
I saw this last night and felt mixed emotions of hope and sadness. To so many black youths disregard their education disturbed me. But seeing the few that are fighting to get out of “the hood” through education was awe inspiring.
“Little Rock Central” reminded me of the feature film we’re producing right now that focuses on the plight of black America and the phony black leaders that undermine our progress. The title is top secret but the working title is “Black Activist Project.” You can find rough, rough edits of raw footage on youtube.com @ http://youtube.com/watch?v=vB8JMDfvw3g.
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