Black-and-white photograph of President Dwight D. Eisenhower with Arkansas governor Orval Faubus and Representative Brooks Hays of Arkansas. Hays had arranged the meeting between Eisenhower and Faubus to try and resolve the school integration crisis at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Even after the meeting Faubus refused to allow African American students to begin attending classes at Central High School, continuing the confrontation over court-ordered integration. The Little Rock school district voted to integrate its schools in 1957. Governor Faubus, opposed to integration, sent members of the Arkansas National Guard to prevent African American students--the "Little Rock Nine"--from entering Little Rock Central High School on September 4. Federal courts ordered Governor Faubus to remove the troops and permit the nine students to enter the school on September 23, 1957. However, because of the rioting that continued outside, the students were removed from the school after three hours. President Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered troops from the 101st Airborne Division to Little Rock to restore order and to protect the students. After a single year of integration, Governor Faubus closed the Little Rock public high schools to avoid further integration. The United States Supreme Court declared Faubus' action illegal and the public schools reopened August 1959.

The Civil Rights Digital Library received support from a National Leadership Grant for Libraries awarded to the University of Georgia by the Institute of Museum and Library Services for the aggregation and enhancement of partner metadata.

Collection: General Records of the Department of the Navy, Series: Photographs of Official Activities of President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Unrestricted

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Forms part of: Presidential Timeline of the Twentieth Century.