Author Biographies
This glossary contains short biographical sketches about the authors of the novels and selections read in Mr. Anderson's classes.
Browse the glossary using this index
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Beals, Melba Pattillo | |||
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As a teenager, Melba Beals was caught up in a civil rights
firestorm. After the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision,
Beals was hopeful that she could attend the prestigious Little Rock
Central High School. When a federal judge ordered Centtal High to
desegregate in 1957 the NAACP recruited Beals and other black teens
for this difficult task. Angry mobs blocked the black students from
entering the high school, resulting in a three-week standoff
between students and segregationists. President Eisenhower had to
send troops to escort the black students into the school and force
integration. Even with this protection, Beals and the other black
students had to endure slurs, fights, and physical abuse as part of
the first integrated class at Central High. In a later interview
about her experiences, Beals noted that she wanted to attend
Central for the educational opportunities, not to be the first to
integrate. As a result other experience, Beals learned to relate to
the media and pursued a career in journalism. After receiving a
Masters degree in journalism from Columbia University, Beals worked
as a news reporter in California. Her novels Warriors Don’t Cry: A Searing Memoir of the
Battle to Integrate Little Rock Central High School and
White Is a State of Mind
were influential works describing the desegregation of public
schools. In 1999 the nine students who integrated LRHS were awarded
the Congressional Gold Medal, the
highest civilian honor in the United States. | |||