Ruby Bridges

She changed the life of everyone forever...

Ruby Bridges was and still is a very special person. She helped end segregation. If you don't know or aren't quite sure what segregation is--- let me explain.

A while back when black people were not treated equally, and the white folk decided they were better than the blacks a ploblem occurred. Black and white children could not attend school together. They could not use the same bathroom or water fountain. The black people were not treated the same as white people as much as so they had to give up their seats on a bus if a white person got on and wanted to sit there. This was called SEGREGATION. That meant that they were seperate. What you will read about in the next few paragraphs is going to also contain the word INTEGRATION. That meant to bring together and be together and equal.

Ruby Bridges was in her first grade year in 1960. She was attending a black or colored school a while away from her house. At the time some people in the government thought that schools should be integrated. Others didn't. They did several debates and they decided to integragate the schools. This was the first step to Ruby's fame and adventure...

Many students were tested to see which ones were going to go to the white school. The only ones who passed were girls. There were five originally, but the fifth girl's parents backed out at the last minute. So three of the girls were going to one school. Then there was Ruby. Ruby would go to William Franz public school, alone. She went to school at William Franz surrounded by guards, and police officers. Her mother came with her on the first day when they were sitting in the main office all day. Then on the second day her mother went with her again and she was introduced to her first grade teacher, Mrs. Henry. On the third day her mother did not go with her.