Sixty-four years ago next month, U.S. Marshals accompanied Ruby Bridges as the 6-year-old walked past crowds of jeering white people and became one of the first black children to attend an all-white elementary school in the South.
The scene was made famous by Norman Rockwell’s 1964 painting “The Problem We All Live With,” which hung in the White House near the Oval Office during former President Barack Obama’s term.
Bridges became a national symbol for the civil rights movement and was named one of the “Women of the Century” by USA Today.
Four years ago, an illustration went viral showing Vice President Kamala Harris walking along a wall, her shadow transformed into the silhouette of Bridges as a girl.
On November 14, the 64th anniversary of the day she made history, Bridges will appear in Topeka.
When and where will Ruby Bridges appear in Topeka?
Bridges will appear Nov. 14 from 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. at Washburn University’s White Concert Hall, where hundreds of Kansas students are expected to welcome her to celebrate the annual Kansas Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day.
Live streams of the event will be made available to schools across the country. More information about how schools can register to have students attend in person or watch a livestream video can be found at www.RubyBridgesinKS24.org.
“This is an incredible opportunity to literally bring history to life for our Kansas students,” said Kansas Education Commissioner Randy Watson. “For students to be able to listen to Ms. Bridges describe her personal experiences goes beyond what any textbook can teach.”
Bridges joins numerous major civil rights figures who have visited Topeka, including Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, Julian Bond and Jesse Jackson.
How did Ruby Bridges make history?
Bridges was born in 1954, the year of the Supreme Court’s historic Brown v. Topeka Board of Education ruling that segregated public schools in the United States.
Four U.S. Marshals accompanied Bridges and her mother on November 14, 1960, as they entered William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans, where Bridges was the first black student to attend as part of court-ordered desegregation.
Forced to spend her first day in the principal’s office, Bridges spent her first year as the only member of a one-person class taught by Barbara Henry, a white woman from Boston.
During that time, Bridges was unable to go to the cafeteria for lunch or outside for gym. A few white families braved the crowds to take their children to class, but Bridges was not allowed to see them until the spring, when Henry would take them to their classroom for part of the day.
What Ruby Bridges will do in Topeka
Bridges, now 70, is an author, speaker and civil rights advocate whose focus includes teaching children to overcome racial disparities.
In a press release announcing next month’s performance, organizers noted that Kansas celebrated its first Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day on Nov. 14, 2023, as proclaimed by Gov. Laura Kelly and reported on by Bridges.
Organizers asked Bridges to attend in person for this year’s celebration of the day, which falls in the year of the 70th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, organizers said in a news release.
“As our wonderful Kansas kids always do, they enthusiastically created an inspiring video to send to Ruby, asking her to come to Kansas,” the release said. “Led by Senator Oletha Faust-Goudeau and her proclamation, SCR 1703, the Kansas Legislature joined our students in extending their invitation to Ms. Bridges. And Ruby Bridges said YES!”
The main mission of next month’s event will be to use Bridges’ story to inspire young people while promoting unity, courage and the power of young people to create positive change, said Kansas Rep. Valdenia Winn, D-Kansas City, Kansas.
“We strive for students to leave the event with a sense of empowerment and a deeper connection to Kansas history and the stories that reflect resilience, progress and the importance of standing up for what is right,” Winn said in the news release.
How can my group become a sponsor?
Schools, clubs and church/community groups can register to participate in Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day even if their school is not part of the Topeka event. The November 14 celebration at White Concert Hall will offer several sponsorship packages, which remain available on a limited basis and can be found online.
Sponsors will have the opportunity to meet Bridges after the event, the news release said.
It said sponsors include multiple Kansas lawmakers, the Kansas City Royals, Evergy, Johnson County Community College, Kansas Tourism and the Brown v. Board of Education National Historical Park.
Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.
This article originally appeared in Topeka Capital-Journal: Civil Rights icon Ruby Bridges appears in Topeka on November 14
