Description

President Clinton and members of Congress honored nine former Little Rock, Arkansas high school students with Congressional Gold Medals. Known as the "Little Rock Nine," they were the first African American students bussed to white public schools under new desegregation legislation in 1957. These former students were honored for their courage and determination in helping end segregation in Southern schools. The “Little Rock Nine” were Minnijean Brown, Elizabeth Echford, Ernest Green, Thelma Mothershed, Melba Patillo Beals, Gloria Ray, Terrence Roberts, Jefferson Thomas, and Carlotta Walls.