Little Rock Crisis

The Little Rock Crisis of 1957 was a major event during the American Civil Rights Movement.

The Little Rock crisis of 1957 was an event that gained worldwide attention as Governor Orval Faubus of Arkansas called out the National Guard on September 4 to prevent nine African-American students (known as the Little Rock Nine) from attending Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.

This act was in defiance of Federal court orders and the US Supreme Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) that called for the racial integration of public schools.

Faubus's order set him on a collision course with President Dwight D. Eisenhower who was determined to enforce the orders of the Federal courts.

Eisenhower federalized the National Guard and ordered them to return to their barracks. Eisenhower then deployed elements of the 101st Airborne Division to Little Rock to protect the students.

Little Rock Central High School still functions as part of the Little Rock School District and now houses a Civil Rights Museum to commemorate the events of 1957.