On January 20, 2009 members of the Little Rock Nine sat together with Tuskegee Airmen, all of whom received personal invitations from Barack Obama to attend the historic inauguration. Tears rolled down some of their cheeks and others watched in awe as Barack Obama was sworn in as President. When they were teenagers, they could only dream that a black person would one day be president. 

Fifty one years ago National Guardsmen, called out by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus to prevent nine black teenagers from entering Little Rock Central High School, lined the sidewalk around the campus. On the street, a mob gathered to protest the entrance of the black students.  Shocking images and news footage of angry white protesters screaming, chanting and following Elizabeth Eckford, one of the students who arrived at school alone, became front page news all around the world.

Two weeks later President Eisenhower sent more than 1,000 soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division to Little Rock and federalized the Arkansas National Guard to ensure that the students were granted their 14th Amendment rights of “equal protection under the law” to attend the formerly all-white school.

Through local, national and international media exposure, the nine teenagers later became known as the “Little Rock Nine.” Throughout the school year the Nine endured constant verbal and physical harassment. Yet, with the philosophy of nonviolence as their survival mechanism the students kept their heads high and persevered through the tumultuous school year.  Central High School became a symbol of hope as the first black student senior, Ernest Green, received his high school diploma in May, 1958.

President Barack Obama has long known about the Little Rock Nine and has referenced them in some of his speeches across the country. On September 25, 2007, Illinois Senator Obama issued a statement marking the 50th Anniversary of the integration of Central High School:

"Five decades ago, the Little Rock Nine took the lead in America's long march to freedom. Despite slurs, taunts, and all kinds of indignities, these nine students kept their heads high and their backs straight, integrating Little Rock Central High School, and helping realize our founding promise of justice and equality for all,” said Obama.

Carlotta Walls LaNier was proud to be among the millions who gathered to witness history. “I feel vindicated [that I climbed] the steps of Central High among such strong discord, and then [saw] President Obama climb the steps of the White House with the support of [people from] all walks of life. Each of us, (white, black, brown, red and yellow) will play a part in demonstrating what this country can be in tolerance, inclusivity, and equal justice and access for all.”

Jefferson Thomas also braved the bitter cold weather in Washington, D.C. to be there. “We were able to break some race barriers the generations before us were unable to do.  I am proud to have been a part of President Obama's successful wins in 2008, and witness the Inauguration of the first person of color to be elected to lead our nation as President." 

Although the Little Rock Nine acknowledge that “change has come,” they want people to know that the struggle is not over, and contemporary injustices still flourish. “Now that we have so grandly crushed one threshold in civil rights--that of ethnic discrimination in politics,” said Gloria Ray Karlmark, “Let us continue our struggle and eliminate gender discrimination in all aspects of our society.” 

Jefferson Thomas also warns that “this is not the end of the Civil/Human Rights Movement…Even though we have an African-American living in the White House, we must…make the "Trickle Down" theory work for equality and equal justice in all fifty state governments.”

Even President Obama cautions us to not become complacent, yet he expresses hope.
 “They [ the Little Rock Nine] proved that [Brown v. Board] could work, signaling the beginning of the end of Jim Crow, and making a life of hope and opportunity possible for someone like me. And yet a half-century later, much work remains. Too many of our schools are crumbling. Disparities have widened. And our Supreme Court has argued that voluntary integration is the same as Jim Crow segregation, that promoting diversity in our schools is tantamount to the plight of Linda Brown or the Little Rock 9. But I'm hopeful. Because fifty years ago, nine young men and women showed the world that in the face of impossible odds, ordinary people could do extraordinary things…So, if we're serious about living up to our founding ideals, we need to reconnect our politics with the core decency of the American people - we need to recapture in this country the dignity and courage embodied by the Little Rock Nine. And we need to do the hard work to make sure that this nation lives up to its creed."