*Two members of the Little Rock Nine are protesting the Arkansas Department of Education’s restrictions on Advanced Placement African American Studies.
Historically, segregation at Little Rock Central High School was disrupted by nine Black students (Little Rock Nine) more than 60 years ago. Today, surviving members are speaking out against state legislation aimed at discouraging students from enrolling in AP African American Studies.
“I think the attempts to erase history is working for the Republican Party,” Elizabeth Eckford, one of the Little Rock Nine, told NBC News. “They have some boogeymen that are really popular with their supporters.”
State officials aren’t prohibiting students from taking AP African America, but they caution that it may not count toward graduation requirements.
Exclusive: Members of the Little Rock Nine, who in 1957 integrated Little Rock Central High School under threats from white segregationists, are denouncing the Arkansas Department of Education’s restrictions on an AP African American Studies course. https://t.co/gMHvjkDIty
— NBC News (@NBCNews) August 21, 2023
Terrence Roberts, 81, another member of the Little Rock Nine, told NBC News that the group “suffered physically and emotionally” in the effort to integrate Central High. Laws prohibiting what students can and cannot learn should be kept to a minimum, he said.
“I know there are voices pushing back,” he said. “The question is, will they be successful?”
Ivory Toldson, the director of Education Innovation and Research at the NAACP, spoke with five members of the Little Rock Nine, and noted that the criticism of AP African American studies is an “attack on Black history.”
“These are the larger issues I wish they would talk about as they go on defense about this issue,” Toldson said, according to NBC News. “They really should be setting forth the plan to make sure all Black students in Arkansas have equal access to a quality education.”
The Arkansas Department of Education is uncertain as to whether or not AP African American Studies violates an executive order signed by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders that prohibits “critical race theory” from being taught in classrooms.
During a recent interview on Fox News, Sanders stated that schools will focus on “the basics of teaching math, of teaching reading, writing and American history.”
“We cannot perpetuate a lie to our students and push this propaganda leftist agenda teaching our kids to hate America and hate one another,” she said.
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