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In 1957, nine black students integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, despite the will of then-Gov. Orval Faubus. The students underwent extreme verbal and sometimes physical abuse after being admitted. Student Melba Patillo had acid thrown into her eyes. Others were spat on and confronted by students. The bravery of those nine Little Rock students built the nation’s largest remaining court-ordered desegregation system in education.

 

Since the desegregation act, the Little Rock school district has been through several racially charged court battles, including one in 1982 where the city schools sued two neighboring districts and the state for lack of progress with desegregation. By 1989, payments were ordered to the Little Rock School District to assist in desegregation programs.

 

Now, 54 years later, the desegregation efforts of the Little Rock School district are under question. Under court decision, the schools received annual assistance of $70 million from the state to keep the programs going. Several schools are asking the district to continue the annual funding. In addition to being used for construction of some magnet schools, district leaders state that the money keeps mandatory government programs available to students. However, some of the schools are accused of keeping schools purposely segregated to keep funding. Others were accused of misusing the funds for other budget items rather than desegregation.

As it stands, children are bussed from around the city to attend the schools outside their neighborhood. This is true of both black and white students. Some Little Rock schools remain as segregated as the neighborhoods around them. Families are leaving the areas where white students are supplied to majority black neighborhoods, and some parents are looking for other schools to send their kids to pending the court decision.

Today, a federal appeals court will hear arguments from both sides. Judges will decide whether the state of Arkansas will continue to make payments and whether or not two of the districts should remain under court supervision.