As Ruby Bridges prepared to address a packed Rockefeller Chapel on Jan. 29, black-and-white footage of angry white mobs began to play. The images showed the six-year-old Bridges being escorted by U.S. marshals after single-handedly integrating William Frantz Elementary School more than 60 years ago.
University of Chicago Assoc. Prof. Rashauna Johnson began a fireside chat with Bridges by pointing out that people often struggle to square the vibrant, youthful civil rights icon with those hate-filled images.
“It speaks to the fact that we think that this happened such a long, long time ago,” said Bridges, who was the first Black student to integrate alone an all-white New Orleans public school in 1960. “And seeing me is a reminder that it wasn’t that long ago."
The author and activist took part in a wide-ranging discussion at UChicago’s 35th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Celebration—a conversation in which she reflected on her early memories but also how today’s youth must be protected against the “grown-up disease” of racism.
The conversation was preceded by remarks from UChicago undergraduate student Arsima Araya and President Paul Alivisatos. Both speakers evoked the memory of Dr. King, who spoke at Rockefeller Chapel in 1956 and 1959.
“People gathered here 60 years ago in search of renewal, inspiration and connection at a time of heightened racial divides and uncertainty,” said Araya, a fourth-year in the College. “I find that we enter this room in eerily similar circumstances.”
Alivisatos encouraged the gathered UChicago and greater South Side communities to not only honor King’s legacy, but also seek inspiration in Bridges’ story, which he said “exemplifies resilience, courage and the tremendous potential of one individual acting in service of an idea.”
“She reminds us that the seeds of compassion, once planted, can flourish for generations,” Alivisatos said.
Read the full UChicago News story here.