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United States of America
50th anniversary of the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School
2007 P Proof Silver Dollar Coin 38.1mm (26.73 grams) 0.900 Silver
Reference: KM# 418 | Engravers: Richard Masters, Charles Vickers.
LIBERTY RM CLV DESEGREGATION IN EDUCATION 2007 IN GOD WE TRUST, The feet of the “Little Rock Nine” escorted by a soldier to enter the school. This group of nine black students entered the previously segregated facility following the landmark decision of Brown v. Board of Education.
ONE DOLLAR E PLURIBUS UNUM LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL P UNITED STATES of AMERICAั, Little Rock Central High School as it appeared in 1957. The building still operates as an educational institution and has been designated as a National Historic Site.
Coin Notes:
The 2007 Little Rock Silver Dollar was issued to commemorative the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School, an important event in the American Civil Rights movement.
The United States Mint began sales of the 2007 Little Rock Commemorative Silver Dollar on May 15, 2007. Both proof and uncirculated versions were produced at the Philadelphia Mint and limited to a maximum authorized mintage of 500,000 coins. The US Mint sold the coins individually or as part of two different sets. The first was the Little Rock Coin and Medal Set, which included the uncirculated version of the coin and a 1-1/2 inch bronze medal.
Surcharges added to the cost of each commemorative coin were paid to the Secretary of the Interior for improvements at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.
You are bidding on the exact item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity.
The Little Rock Nine was a group of nine African American students enrolled in Little Rock Central High School in 1957. Their enrollment was followed by the Little Rock Crisis, in which the students were initially prevented from entering the racially segregated school by Orval Faubus, the Governor of Arkansas. They then attended after the intervention of President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
The U.S. Supreme Court issued its historic Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, 347 U.S. 483, on May 17, 1954. Tied to the 14th Amendment, the decision declared all laws establishing segregated schools to be unconstitutional, and it called for the desegregation of all schools throughout the nation. After the decision, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) attempted to register black students in previously all-white schools in cities throughout the South. In Little Rock, Arkansas, the school board agreed to comply with the high court’s ruling. Virgil Blossom, the Superintendent of Schools, submitted a plan of gradual integration to the school board on May 24, 1955, which the board unanimously approved. The plan would be implemented during the fall of the 1957 school year, which would begin in September 1957.
By 1957, the NAACP had registered nine black students to attend the previously all-white Little Rock Central High, selected on the criteria of excellent grades and attendance. Called the “Little Rock Nine”, they were Ernest Green (b. 1941), Elizabeth Eckford (b. 1941), Jefferson Thomas (1942–2010), Terrence Roberts (b. 1941), Carlotta Walls LaNier (b. 1942), Minnijean Brown (b. 1941), Gloria Ray Karlmark (b. 1942), Thelma Mothershed (b. 1940), and Melba Pattillo Beals (b. 1941). Ernest Green was the first African American to graduate from Central High School.
When integration began on September 4, 1957, the Arkansas National Guard was called in to “preserve the peace”. Originally at orders of the governor, they were meant to prevent the black students from entering due to claims that there was “imminent danger of tumult, riot and breach of peace” at the integration. However, President Eisenhower issued Executive order 10730, which federalized the Arkansas National Guard and ordered them to support the integration on September 23 of that year, after which they protected the African American students.
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