Martin Luther King. Rosa Parks. Say their names and most people can tell you who they were and what they represented. Sadly, however, mention the name Ruby Bridges to an average American adult or school-age child and you might draw a blank look.

For those of you who may not know her story, this sweet and innocent little girl was one of the first to desegregate schools in New Orleans, Louisiana. The other children who would be integrating attended a different school, so she ended up being the only black child at her elementary school and had to be taken to school escorted daily by federal marshalls because they feared for her safety.

Her story is a beautiful but very painful one. I highly recommend the book The Story of Ruby Bridges, by Robert Coles,



who was the child psychiatrist who requested to work with Ruby while she was experiencing the trauma of integrating into an all white school where she was not wanted. I also recommend Through My Eyes which was written by Ruby herself.

Disney made a television movie called "Ruby Bridges" that is excellent as well, but I will warn you that the anger and hateful comments spewing out of the mouths of the parents of the other children can be very stressful for a child to watch. If you have young children, you might want to preview it first before you decide if your children are mature enough to handle it.

As part of Black History Month, my sister read her fifth grade school class a story about Ruby Bridges. Each day when Ruby entered the school, many parents of the other children stood outside the school taunting Ruby, calling her names, and even resorting to spitting and putting a black doll in a coffin. The looks of hatred in one of the pictures was very strong in the book my sister was reading to her class, and one of the boys just quietly said "wow", when he saw the parents' faces.

What is even more of a "wow", is the courage and faith this girl exemplified as day after day she faced the angry crowds as she rightfully entered her new school. In an article she wrote for Guideposts magazine published in March 2000, she stated:

The next morning my mother told me she couldn't go to school with me. She had to work and look after my brothers and sister. "The marshals will take good care of you, Ruby Nell," Mama assured me. "Remember, if you get afraid, say your prayers. You can pray to God anytime, anywhere. He will always hear you."

That was how I started praying on the way to school. The things people yelled at me didn't seem to touch me. Prayer was my protection. After walking up the steps past the angry crowd, though, I was glad to see Mrs. Henry.

Mrs. Henry was her school teacher who taught Ruby alone each and every day because none of the parents would allow their children to be in a class with a black child. Clearly this is an example of the influence parents have in the lives of their children, not only with racism, but with any values and opinions they pass on to their children. On Ruby Bridge's official website she has a rather profound quote: "Racism is a grown up disease. Let's stop using kids to spread it."

continued...