We visit a lot of places that stick with us on our travels and filming for our PBS series. Little Rock Central High School, a National Historic Site managed by the National Park Service, is one that had a particularly strong impact. Managed by the National Park Service, Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas played an important role in the Civil Rights Movement. It’s also located on the US Civil Rights Trail, which traces more than 100 sites across 15 states, including Topeka, Kansas, to Memphis, Tennessee, from Atlanta, Georgia, to Selma and Birmingham.
I traveled to Little Rock to interview National Park Service interpreter Enimini Ekong at this site and learn about the history of the Little Rock Nine and the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case. Watch this video to commemorate a major victory in the fight for civil rights in education and Black History Month.
On September 25th, 2017 the 60th anniversary of the desegregation of Central High School was marked with a ceremony at Central High School with former President Bill Clinton as the keynote speaker. Clinton also spoke in 2007 at the 50th anniversary of the Little Rock school crisis. The Little Rock Nine Members will also be in attendance. From Friday, September 22, through the Sunday, September 24, Little Rock also played host to other commemoration events, including a concert and interfaith service, sponsored by the City of Little Rock, and the Little Rock School District (LRSD). Little Rock Central High School is the only functioning high school to be located within the boundary of a national historic site. It stood at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement.
Watch this full episode on Amazon Prime and on your local PBS TV station.
