Posted on 09/09/2007 3:37:47 AM PDT by Nextrush
The National Guard blocked entrance to black students and even the black employees who cooked and cleaned at Little Rock Central High School.
Daily crowds of pro-segregation people gathered outside the school to make sure the black students didn't go in.
Governor Orval Faubus sent his evidence to the White House of the need for the guard to prevent violence.
A cross was burned on the front lawn of Little Rock Mayor Woodrow Mann, who had disputed the governor's contention that violence was possible if the school was integrated.
The school board went to Federal District Judge Ronald Davies to ask for a halt to the integration of Central High.
Davies waited until Saturday September 7th to issue his ruling that the integration of the school should proceed.
He said that "ultimate chaos will prevail if court decrees are flaunted."
The school board announced that the school would be open to "all students" on Monday.
NAACP Chief Legal Counsel Thurgood Marshall came to Little Rock to be directly involved in the court battles over Central High.
On Monday September 9th Governor Orval Faubus said in a statewide TV and radio broadcast that Judge Davies was acting in a "high handed and arbitrary" way. Faubus said the danger was "too great" for integration to be allowed.
In the city of North Little Rock that there was a sign of a spreading conflict over integration. Six black students were blocked from entering the North Little Rock High School by white students.
This came after a school board decision there to suspend integration plans.
Later in the day on Monday September 9th Judge Davies ordered proceedings to begin for an injunction against Governor Orval Faubus and two officers of the Arkansas National Guard. They were to be enjoined from blocking the integration of Little Rock Central High School.
News reports spoke of the White House and Governor Faubus being in communication with each other over the matter.
Plans were being layed for a direct meeting between the president and the governor to discuss the standoff.
The Eisenhower Administration was in the position of having to enforce any potential orders from Judge Davies against the governor.
I've been asked to move these over to the Bloggers and Personal section of FR and will do so.
Look there tomorrow 9-10 and thereafter for more posts in this series.
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