Orval Faubus: Integration In Arkansas

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In Arkansas history a lot has happened and Arkansas has had several governors. Integration was a hard time in Arkansas for the people, schools, businesses, and families. Integration was not something that was wanted by everyone and no one was scared to voice their opinion about it. During the time of integration Orval Faubus was the governor and he was one of the people against integration and African American rights. In this research paper you will learn more about Orval Faubus as one of Arkansas’ governors and what all he did to try to stop integration, what his role was during the tough time of integration in Arkansas, along with his role after the first school year of integration. Orval Faubus was governor of Arkansas from 1955-1967.…show more content…
When Faubus failed to enforce the four measures, pressure from the extreme segregationists mounted.” Even after Governor Faubus’ attempts to keep segregation intact, he made five arguments on why he placed troops at Little Rock Central High School to stop integration. These five points come from Roy Reed in Faubus The Life and Times of an American Prodigal from pages 348-349. Point one, Governor Faubus make note of the numerous injuries during the crisis and wanted to “preserve the peace and reduce the chance of injury and property damage”. The second point, he hoped to oppose the growing concentration power in Washington. He wanted to make known the importance of the state making its own decisions. Point three was the ruling of school desegregation by the Supreme Court was illegal although morally correct. The fourth point was that Governor Faubus believed “the federal government should have enforced their own court orders, using marshals, not soldiers, instead of pushing the job onto a state governor”. The fifth and final point, “an intimidating majority of the South’s senators and representatives had signed the defiant Southern Manifesto declaring the 1954 decision essentially unconstitutional. That gesture cut the ground from under southern governors who might have wanted to go along with desegregation. For a governor…show more content…
A U.S. district judge, Harry J. Lemley, granted the school board’s suit but for a two and a half year delay instead. By September 12, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously agreed there should not be a delay on integration. Delaying integration would have meant having to start all over again. This would have meant that the “Little Rock Nine” went through everything for nothing. All their pain and fears they faced would have meant nothing. After Governor Faubus’ first attempt to stop integration, he then responds to the U.S. Supreme Court’s agreement on how integration shouldn’t be delayed by shutting all Little Rock high schools down. Even after the school, in a round-about way, got its way on delaying integration, they still tried to ‘hurt’ the cause of integration. According to Marion Fulk from the Arkansas Democrat, three school board members ordered a purge of 37 teachers and seven principals because they were either integrationist or had collaborated with integrationist. The meeting was held and the three members were recalled and the previous actions were overturned. No matter how hard Governor Faubus, whites, and the schools tried to uphold segregation they were denied every

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