Students, Mentor Bring Little Rock Nine Speaker to the U of A to Discuss History and Racial Climate

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Madeleine Chaisson, Keturah Kiper, Kwamesha Moore, Eric Hall, and Jervae' Franklin pose with Carlotta Walls LaNier after her lecture.

It's one thing to learn about history and prolific change from books, newspaper, or documentaries, but four students and their mentor at the University of Arkansas wanted to bring history directly to the students.

Civil rights icon and National Women's Hall of Fame inductee Carlotta Walls LaNier spoke to the University of Arkansas community on Feb. 11. LaNier spoke about her experience at Central High School as a member of the Little Rock Nine and the history of desegregating education in the South.

In 1957, fourteen-year-old Carlotta Walls was the youngest member of the Little Rock Nine, the group of African American students who integrated Central High School. She and eight other students faced angry mobs and racist elected officials in a crisis that required federal intervention by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. She had no way of knowing that day was the beginning of a journey that would challenge prevailing attitudes, break down barriers, and forever change the social landscape of America.

LaNier is known for motivating audiences with her personal story of perseverance and strength and bringing to life a moment in history that changed the world while inspiring hope for the future.

Madeleine Chaisson, resident assistant and president of the Volunteer Action Center, said having LaNier come and speak was an opportunity to hold an open dialogue about race on the U of A campus.

Chaisson and three other students have been working to bring LaNier to campus since last year. The students wanted to remind the university community about where it has come and help them to continue to move forward. After getting funding and support from different departments and offices across the Division of Student Affairs and the community, Chaisson said they were able to solidify plans to bring LaNier to campus.

The students also received help and encouragement from Eric Hall, coordinator of residence education. Chaisson said she and Hall would have weekly discussions about how to improve the campus community. The idea for bringing LaNier to campus came from one of these discussions. After solidifying the idea, Chaisson and Hall reached out to other students they thought would be interested - Jervae' Franklin, Keturah Kiper, and Kwamesha Moore.

Over the next year, Chaisson, Franklin, Kiper, and Moore would work tirelessly to bring LaNier to campus and facilitate a larger discussion of race in a space where students could feel free to ask questions and confront hot topics not normally tackled in the public sphere.

To learn more about why Chaisson, Franklin, Kiper, and Moore wanted Mrs. Carlotta Walls LaNier to speak to the University of Arkansas community, check out the extended feature at ua4student.uark.edu.