American Presidents and Their Attitudes, Beliefs, and Actions Surrounding Education and Multiculturalism

Multicultural Education, Spring 2004 by Baptiste, H Prentice, Araujo, Blanca

The Civil Eights Act was passed in 1957 and provided for a Civil Eights Commission, a Civil Eights Division in the Justice Department, and empowered the attorney general to seek an injunction when someone was deprived of the right to vote. But it's penalties were slaps on the wrist, and the compromise jury trial amendment would put few rights offenders behind bars (Wicker, 2002). Eisenhower wanted this bill because it was very mild. Pressured by Southern senators the bill that passed was weak on the most important civil rights issues of that time.

Eisenhower considered himself a "moderate" on the race issue. He wanted to uphold the Supreme Court, but he did not want to offend his many Southern friends. He wanted to enforce the law, but he did not want to use force to do so. He did not want to antagonize anyone, but "anyone" always seemed to turn out to be white Southern segregationists. He had waged two successful campaigns to become the nation's leader, but he did not want to lead on the issue of civil rights. The upshot of his conflicting emotions and statements was confusion, which allowed the segregationists to convince themselves that the President would never act (Ambrose, 1984).

It was this thinking that led Governor Orval Faubus of Arkansas to present Eisenhower with the problem he had most wished to avoid. In 1954, Brown vs. the Board of Education went to the Supreme Court and the court ruled that segregated schools were inherently unequal and in violation of the 14th amendment. Eisenhower condemned the decision and promised that he would not enforce school desegregation. When a newsman asked him what he would do about the schools, Eisenhower replied that he never gave answers to suppositions or to possible future situations, that he would have to look at the facts at the time.

He said, however, that any decree issued by a duly constituted Federal court must be respected by all citizens and officials, regardless of their personal views (Morrow, 1963). He tried to delay the court orders until he was obliged to act in 1957 during the desegregation of Central High School in Little Eock, Arkansas. The president tried to avoid federal intervention but could not when Governor Faubus of Arkansas used State Guard troops at the school to keep nine black students from entering the school.

Eisenhower then made it clear that he would put his personal feelings aside to enforce the law. He sent the 101st Airborne Division to restore order. He did not believe in forced integration. He had tried desperately to keep the integration problem "under control," but according to him agitators wouldn't let it be that way (Ambrose, 1984). In a statement to the nation, the President emphasized that he was not sending U.S. troops into the South to desegregate the schools, but only to maintain the law.

He went out of his way to state that his personal opinion on Brown vs. Board of Education had no bearing on its enforcement (Ambrose, 1984). He used troops, but some think only because Governor Faubus had insulted him, and not from any strong conviction that a serious injustice had been inflicted upon a large segment of the American people (Morrow, 1963). Southern segregationists were outraged by Eisenhower's actions, but he had to do something if he wanted to remain president. To him, Little Rock was about order. Order was a principle of justice. Civil rights were a mere abstraction that varied from state to state and city to city (O'Reilly, 2002).