Expulsion Appeal Letter to Little Rock School Board, February 17, 1958
Expulsion Appeal Letter to Little Rock School Board, February 17, 1958
Usage conditions apply
- Description
- Throughout the 1957–58 academic year, the Little Rock Nine were frequently harassed at school, both verbally and physically, but it was Minnijean Brown who received a suspension notice from the Little Rock Public School administration on February 6, 1958, for attempting to resist the daily torment. During an argument with a fellow classmate, Brown had called the girl “white trash,” after which the student threw her large purse at Brown. School administrators expelled Brown; the white student went unpunished.
- The school system claimed the expulsion was warranted, as she’d been given a warning to resist retaliation for any bullying after receiving a six-day suspension in December for dumping a bowl of chili on an abusive white male student. Brown’s parents appealed the suspension with a letter to the school board, stating that the repeated attacks against Minnijean represented a concentrated effort to have her expelled, and that she had to defend herself because school officials hadn’t intervened. The appeal was unsuccessful. However, this resulted in Minnijean's move to New York City where she flourished under the guardianship of renowned educational psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark, and graduated on time at New Lincoln High School. Her classmates were not as fortunate as many lost the following year of schooling while the Little Rock Schools were closed to further debate the process of integrating their school system.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Object Name
- letter
- date made
- 1958-02-17
- Associated Name
- Little Rock Nine
- recipient
- Little Rock School District
- Associated Name
- Trickey, Minnijean Brown
- place made
- United States: Arkansas, Little Rock
- Associated Place
- United States: Arkansas, Little Rock, Little Rock Central High School
- United States: Arkansas, Little Rock
- Physical Description
- paper (overall material)
- ink (overall material)
- Measurements
- overall: 25.1 cm x 18.7 cm; 9 7/8 in x 7 3/8 in
- ID Number
- 2015.0238.06
- accession number
- 2015.0238
- catalog number
- 2015.0238.06
- Credit Line
- Gift of Minnijean Brown Trickey
- subject
- School Discipline
- Civil Rights Movement
- Education
- Little Rock Integration Crisis
- See more items in
- Home and Community Life: Education
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
Nominate this object for photography.
Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.
If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.
Note: Comment submission is temporarily unavailable while we make improvements to the site. We apologize for the interruption. If you have a question relating to the museum's collections, please first check our Collections FAQ. If you require a personal response, please use our Contact page.
