Little Rock Nine Study Guide

Documentary Script:

Introduction:
[With a visual with Duncan]
Narrator: Hey guys! Today we will be talking to you about how the events of the Civil Rights Movement affected the African American culture and society.

Background of Civil Rights Movement:
[With a visual of Duncan]
Narrator: What was the civil rights movement you ask? The civil rights movement was a mass protest movement against racial segregation and discrimination in the southern United States during the mid- 1950’s. Through non-violent protests, the civil rights movement broke the pattern of public facilities being segregated by race and achieved the most important breakthrough in equal-rights legislation for African Americans.

Background of the events of what we are going

These three events are Little Rock Nine, the Brown vs. Board case, and the Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X movements. Little Rock Nine and the Brown vs Board case contributed to the desegregation of schools. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X’s civil rights movements helped to contribute to the improvement of African American identity and culture. All of these events have shaped African American culture and identity to what it is today.

Background of Little Rock Nine:
[Insert picture of women with sunglasses holding book]
Narrator: One of the first major events in the Civil Rights movement is Little Rock Nine. Little Rock Nine was an event where nine black students enrolled at a formerly all white Central High School. This took place in Arkansas in September on 1957. These students’ attendance was a test of the Brown vs. Board case. This was a landmark case in 1954. The Supreme Court ruled that segregation in schools was unconstitutional. This ruling allowed the Little Rock Nine event to occur and granted African American students equal educational opportunities.

Outcome of Little Rock Nine and how it affected African American identity and culture:
[Insert picture of women with sunglasses holding

Board case. This was a historical Supreme Court Case because the court declared state laws establishing that black and white students going to separate schools was unconstitutional. This was the direct cause for the little rock nine event. This case is often cited as the case that ended segregation.

How Brown vs Board affected African American culture and identity:
[switch image to close up of newspaper declaring segregation ended in public schools.]
Narrator: This court case decision allowed segregation in schools to slowly diminish. Currently, in almost all of the U.S. there is no notable or noteworthy extreme segregation as there was back in the 50’s and 60’s. It can be said that the decision of this case, has paved a positive path for future generations.

Background of Martin Luther King Jr.:
[open with close up image of MLK speaking at a