Latest news with #LittleRockNine
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
How the Little Rock Nine Proved to Be a Cautionary Tale For Trump Ignoring Court Rulings in 2025
History always repeats itself, but what happens if you never learn your lesson the first time? As President Donald Trump continues his deportation mandate, many are concerned his disregard for court orders will have grave consequences. What's even scarier is the president's recent actions are comparable to one of the darkest times in American history. Just yesterday, Judge Brian Murphy warned Trump deporting a group of migrants to South Sudan could breech his federal court order from last month, according to BBC. This comes in the midst of legal battles between the administration and several federal judges over ongoing deportation cases. It comes down to a debate over the rights of migrants and Trump's 'deport now, ask questions later' mentality, and it's drawing eerie comparisons to the struggle for civil rights in this country. The Civil Rights Movement is a clear example of the true power of federal law. Without court rulings like Brown v. Board of Education, American society would look drastically different today. Now, our nation is at a crossroads in regards to yet another humanitarian crisis: immigration. But to fully understand the implications of Trump's actions, you'd have to revisit the dark history of segregation's past. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled segregation in public schools is unconstitutional. Brown v. Board of Education was immediately met with backlash, as exemplified by the treatment of the first students to desegregate Central High School in Little Rock, Ark., better known as the Little Rock Nine. The nine Black students were spit at, beaten and harassed by segregationists just for trying to go to school. The hatred towards the young students was further justified by Arkansas Gov. Orval Faubus, who unapologetically resisted the Supreme Court's 1954 decision. This led to the Cooper v. Aaron ruling of 1958, which reenforced the state's obligation to desegregate schools. The federal government even had to bring in the National Guard to escort the Little Rock Nine to school. Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III, an 80-year-old President Ronald Reagan appointee, referenced the Cooper v. Aaron ruling after Trump refused to comply with the Supreme Court's ruling to bring back Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was deported despite a judge's 2019 ruling barring that very thing from happening, as we previously reported. Wilkinson described the administration's defiance as 'shocking' before reminding Trump to respect the rule of law, adding that it is 'all too possible to see in this case an incipient crisis.' The difference between Trump's clear defiance of federal rulings and Little Rock's segregation struggle comes down to state versus executive power. Despite Arkansas' refusal to comply, the federal government stepped in, ensuring the respect for law and safety of the Black students. Today, there is no one to step in to ensure the president is playing by the rules of judge's orders, and whether now or later, there's bound to be consequences. As history has shown us, without checks and balances, the American system will fail. Take a look at the Civil War, when the country was ripped in half over slavery and states' rights. If Trump continues on the path of defiance and if no one can put him in check, America will be forced to make a decision. Which do we value power of the president or the integrity of the Constitution? For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Fox News
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Fox News
Ex-NBA player compares Angel Reese to 'Little Rock Nine' member
Former NBA player Etan Thomas compared Chicago Sky star Angel Reese to a member of the "Little Rock Nine," as the WNBA player allegedly had "hateful comments" hurled toward her during the team's loss to the Indiana Fever. Thomas posted a photo to his social media account on Monday, portraying Reese as one of the nine Black schoolgirls who were able to attend an all-White school in Arkansas following the 1954 Supreme Court ruling that ended segregation in public schools. The photo showed Reese superimposed onto the iconic black and white photo known as the "Scream Image." It showed 15-year-old Elizabeth Eckford being yelled at on her way to school. The picture depicted the bravery Eckford showed by going into Little Rock Central High School. "This is how it's been for Angel Reese ever since the 2023 NCAA Tournament when her LSU Tigers defeated Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the national championship game," Thomas wrote on X. The WNBA was reportedly investigating racial slurs that were reported to have been directed at Reese during the game on Saturday. The league did not get into specifics of what allegedly occurred during the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. "The WNBA strongly condemns racism, hate, and discrimination in all forms — they have no place in our league or in society. We are aware of the allegations and are looking into the matter," the league said in a statement. The Women's National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) also released a statement. "The WNBPA is aware of reports of hateful comments at yesterday's game in Indianapolis and supports the WNBA's current investigation into this matter," the union said. "Such behavior is unacceptable for our sport. "Under the WNBA's 'No Space for Hate' policy, we trust the league to thoroughly investigate and take swift, appropriate action to ensure a safe and welcoming environment for all." Reese and Clark had a heated exchange during the game, but both players said it was a "basketball play" and nothing more. Reese's confidence in her abilities and willingness to back them up has made her one of the most-talked-about athletes in the WNBA. She finished second in WNBA Rookie of the Year voting, earned a WNBA MVP vote and finished her first year with the Sky averaging a double-double. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - Trump seeks a return to America's racist roots — and he's moving fast
The Trump administration is fighting against diversity, equity and inclusion and for a return to extreme racial exclusion, inequality and white supremacy. This was evident from the first few weeks of his presidency, when President Trump adopted a series of executive orders and guidance seeking to end affirmative action, eliminate efforts to address discriminatory hiring practices in the federal government, and to no longer prohibit segregation for government contractors. We have also seen orders to abolish programs that ensure equity and address racial disparities in such areas as health care, and to ban books and other materials that honestly discuss race in American history from K-12 education, higher education, the military, and even archives held at the Smithsonian. One recent effort by the Trump administration designed to exacerbate racial inequality and exclusion in American schools that should not be overlooked is last month's executive order that claims to remove equity from school discipline. The order seeks to undo policies from former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden that reminded schools of their duty under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, to ensure that discipline guidance and practices do not exclude students based on race or result in disparate punishment of students of color. Nationally, Black students experience suspensions and expulsions at approximately two to three times the rate of white students, limiting their access to in-class instruction and learning. Critically, pervasive school discipline disparities are not explicable by actual differences in the conduct of students of different races or differences in socioeconomic status. There is consensus in education research that Black students are no more likely to misbehave than other students. In fact, racial disparities are most pronounced for minor, subjective offenses where educators have discretion to determine whether behavior constitutes a punishable offense. Schools did not always use suspension and expulsion to discipline students. Prior to the 1960s school suspension was rarely, if ever, used in schools. In contrast, during the first years of school desegregation, the number of Black students who were suspended and expelled jumped significantly. For example, Minnijean Brown-Trickey, one of the Black students who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957, was later expelled for pushing back against the racial harassment she experienced. As she was expelled, white students chanted 'One down, eight to go,' referring to a desire to exclude the other Black students who comprised the Little Rock Nine. In a recent article, I describe how the NAACP Legal Defense Fund convened national civil rights organizations in 1972 to discuss the sudden, systematic exclusion of Black children in desegregating schools. A report released that year, titled 'The Student Pushout: Victim of Continued Resistance to Desegregation,' found that large numbers of non-white students had been pushed to drop out of many recently desegregated school systems. According to the report, by suspending and expelling Black students at higher rates, school administrators were subverting court orders to desegregate. In some desegregating school districts, upwards of one-third or one-half of Black students were suspended from their new schools. An examination of some of the 'offenses' for which Black students were suspended shows how hostile treatment of Black students in desegregated environments motivated exclusionary discipline. For example, Black male students were suspended for talking to white female students. Black female students were suspended for not saying 'yes sir' and 'yes ma'am' when speaking to white adults. A coalition of civil rights advocates pushed the Department of Education to recognize the civil rights violations and exclusion occurring through racially disparate school discipline. This advocacy would eventually lead to the Title VI disparate impact regulations that Trump now seeks to eliminate. Reflecting on the history of suspensions and expulsions, and the reasons Black students are punished more harshly, is critical to creating change today. This history is necessary to understand persistent biases. Research shows that adults in schools are more likely to interpret the behavior of Black students as disrespectful, aggressive, threatening and dangerous compared to white students engaged in the same behavior. Deep-seated racial stereotypes lead to adultification bias, or the perception of Black children as older, less innocent and less worthy of nurturing and support. Educators and policymakers must address adult biases and eliminate subjective and discriminatory discipline policies. Change is possible. In October 2023, California passed Bill 274, which prohibits schools from issuing suspensions for discipline categories, including 'willful defiance,' tardiness and truancy, that have been shown to disparately exclude Black students for offenses that pose no danger to others. As California legislators recognized, suspensions and expulsions serve no educational purpose and unfairly exclude Black and other marginalized students. Exclusionary punishment is not an effective deterrent for student misbehavior and negatively impacts learning and life outcomes for students. It's time for lawmakers across the country to act to ban unfair and discriminatory school discipline practices and adopt adopt research-based strategies, like restorative justice, to improve school climates. Cara McClellan is director of the Advocacy for Racial and Civil Justice Clinic and practice associate professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Trump seeks a return to America's racist roots — and he's moving fast
The Trump administration is fighting against diversity, equity and inclusion and for a return to extreme racial exclusion, inequality and segregation. This was evident from the first few weeks of his presidency, when President Trump adopted a series of executive orders and guidance seeking to end affirmative action, eliminate efforts to address discriminatory hiring practices in the federal government, and to no longer prohibit segregation for government contractors. We have also seen orders to abolish programs that ensure equity and address racial disparities in such areas as health care, and to ban books and other materials that honestly discuss race in American history from K-12 education, higher education, the military, and even national archives held at the Smithsonian. One recent effort by the Trump administration designed to exacerbate racial inequality and exclusion in American schools that should not be overlooked is last month's executive order that claims to remove equity from school discipline. By its own terms, the order seeks to undo policies from former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden that reminded schools of their duty under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, to ensure that discipline policies and practices do not exclude students based on race or result in disparate punishment of students of color. Nationally, Black students experience suspensions and expulsions at approximately two to three times the rate of white students, limiting their access to in-class instruction and learning. Critically, pervasive school discipline disparities are not explicable by actual differences in the conduct of students of different races or differences in socioeconomic status. There is consensus in education research that Black students are no more likely to misbehave than other students. In fact, racial disparities are most pronounced for minor, subjective offenses where educators have discretion to determine whether behavior constitutes a punishable offense. Schools did not always use suspension and expulsion to discipline students. Prior to the 1960s school suspension was rarely, if ever, used in schools. In contrast, during the first years of school desegregation, the number of Black students who were suspended and expelled jumped significantly. For example, Minnijean Brown-Trickey, one of the Black students who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957, was later expelled for pushing back against the racial harassment she experienced. As she was expelled, white students chanted 'One down, eight to go,' referring to a desire to exclude the other Black students who comprised the Little Rock Nine. National civil rights organizations convened in 1972 to discuss the sudden systematic exclusion of Black children in desegregating schools. A report released that year, titled 'The Student Pushout: Victim of Continued Resistance to Desegregation,' found that large numbers of non-white students had been pushed to drop out of many recently desegregated school systems. According to the report, by suspending and expelling Black students at higher rates, school administrators were subverting court orders to desegregate. In some desegregating school districts, upwards of one-third or one-half of Black students were suspended from their new schools. An examination of some of the 'offenses' for which Black students were suspended shows how hostile treatment of Black students in desegregated environments motivated exclusionary discipline. For example, Black male students were suspended for talking to white female students. Black female students were suspended for not saying 'yes sir' and 'yes ma'am' when speaking to white adults. A coalition of civil rights advocates pushed the Department of Education to recognize the civil rights violations and exclusion occurring through racially disparate school discipline. This advocacy would eventually lead to the Title VI disparate impact regulations that Trump now seeks to eliminate. Reflecting on the history of suspensions and expulsions, and the reasons Black students are punished more harshly, is critical to creating change today. This history is necessary to understand persistent biases. Research shows that adults in schools are more likely to interpret the behavior of Black students as disrespectful, aggressive, threatening and dangerous compared to white students engaged in the same behavior. Deep-seated racial stereotypes lead to adultification bias, or the perception of Black children as older, less innocent and less worthy of nurturing and support. Educators and policymakers must address adult biases and eliminate subjective and discriminatory discipline policies. Change is possible. In October 2023, California passed Bill 274, which prohibits schools from issuing suspensions for discipline categories, including 'willful defiance,' tardiness and truancy, that have been shown to disparately exclude Black students for offenses that pose no danger to others. As California legislators recognized, suspensions and expulsions serve no educational purpose and unfairly exclude Black and other marginalized students. Exclusionary punishment is not an effective deterrent for student misbehavior and negatively impacts learning and life outcomes for students. It's time for lawmakers across the country to act to ban unfair and discriminatory school discipline practices and adopt research-based strategies to improve school climates. Cara McClellan is director of the Advocacy for Racial and Civil Justice Clinic and practice associate professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DEI concepts promote sound educational policies and practices in public schools
Donald Trump and Education Secretary Linda McMahon just living their best lives and breaking things. (Photo by) Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are now unwelcome across education. Under new federal guidelines and procedures (some of which were paused by a pair of court rulings last week, but only temporarily), schools, colleges and universities are being inspected for any DEI programs and policies. If the administration's proposals stand, federal funding will be withheld to enforce the elimination of DEI. DEI concepts promote sound educational policies and practices in public schools. Diversity requirements are protections, not guarantees. Equity ensures fair consideration for admission, scholarships and programs regardless of race or ethnicity. Inclusion means that students from all backgrounds have access to public education. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited segregation and discrimination in schools and colleges. It was not enacted to produce quotas, but to provide equal opportunities. DEI initiatives are used to enhance and preserve this legislation. Backpedaling on these guarantees will bring us back to Brown v Board of Education and the Little Rock Nine. Most have grasped the notion that 'separate but equal' is not acceptable, but bigotry and racism are still with us. Our history should not be whitewashed or have past acts of prejudice diminished. Students hold no responsibility for the actions of their ancestors. Analyzing historical and Constitutional cause and effect relationships creates knowledge, not guilt or remorse. It is not indoctrination to receive an unvarnished account of the progression of women's and civil rights or learning that race is a social construct with no scientific merit. It was illegal to educate slaves due to the fear of exposing fallacies of racial superiority. Despite the legal end of slavery and Constitutional guarantees (13th, 14th, and 15th amendments), Jim Crow laws and overt discrimination kept non-whites as second-class citizens, including limited access to education. Students should know that white resentment triggered race riots across the country when Jack Johnson beat a white boxer (1910), destruction by white mobs of affluent black communities in Tulsa (1921) and Rosewood (1923) and bitterness from white players and fans as Black players were integrated into Major League baseball. Effects of racism and bigotry have not been limited to Black Americans. Students should understand the systematic destruction of the Native American population and culture, and comprehend prejudice and hatred against those with Asian and Jewish backgrounds, and conflicts over religious beliefs. Ironically, it is now illegal in some states (but not Nevada, fortunately), to teach some of the content in the three previous paragraphs. 'Enola Gay' scrubbed from the picture of the plane that dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan. Really? Should the identity label 'WASP' be back en vogue? Viewpoint diversity on college and university campuses need not include opinionated nonsense; just rational, evidence-based discussions without invented facts lacking no causal relationships. Emotional expressions based on race/ethnicity or hollow concerns about gender lack academic worth. Competence and merit cannot be determined when there is exclusion before consideration. DEI also includes accommodations for the disabled, pay equity, parental leave, having a job after the birth of a child, rejection of workplace harassment. Imagine public education without any DEI. Is this assault on DEI warranted and will it improve student outcomes? The answer to both questions is no. So, what drives this backlash? Described as lacking ethics and having inferior intellectual ability by his former cabinet members and government officials, the president's push against DEI policies and practices should not be a surprise. He has exhibited life-long racist behavior and education has not always been kind to his followers. From housing discrimination, calling for the death penalty for wrongly accused black teenagers, not wanting blacks to count money at his casinos, birther assertions against political opponents, claims of bias from a Mexican judge, Muslim bans, retweeting racist messages from white supremacists, stating white nationalists are 'very fine people,' kneeling NFL players 'shouldn't be in the country,' and Haitian immigrants 'all have aids,' suggesting that immigrants from Norway are superior to those from Africa and telling congresswomen of color they 'should go back to the countries they came from.' This is only scratching the surface. Reducing and eliminating DEI initiatives makes perfect sense politically. It protects a large part of his political base; undereducated white males who lack the talent and ambition to compete for positions in society. As the president declared after winning the Nevada Republican Presidential Caucus in 2016, 'I love the poorly educated.' President Lyndon B. Johnson once said, 'If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you.' Johnson knew all too well the white grievance that seems to be driving part of our politics today. DEI backlash is just the latest version of what Johnson saw in the 1960's.
