Little Rock Desegregation- Just About the Most Integrated... in the South

In April 1963, Jet magazine reported on the progress of Little Rock’s downtown desegregation. James Forman, executive secretary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, hailed the city as “just about the most integrated… in the South.” Ozell Sutton, associate director of the Arkansas Council on Human Relations, said: “Before 1957, things were smooth because no one asked for much. There was no recognition of the dignity and worth of man, and a condescending relationship existed among whites for Negroes. The city was considered progressive then—by old standards. But we’re now in better shape than ever before because Negroes realize they can do things on their own behalf… The whites now realize they must confront racial problems. This confrontation, not the progress, is the greatest sign of progress in Little Rock right now.” I’m John Kirk of the UALR History Department and this has been an Arkansas moment.