It was the first major breakthrough of the Southeast’s  inflexible (and dangerous) Jim Crow racial culture.

This culture was the central racial question facing America back in 1955. At the time, there were no precidents for desegregation in the Old South. Many feared the worst —- widespread violence and an end to Southeastern public education.

Southeastern states openly challenged — as a unified, defiant block —  the Supreme Court’s historic Brown desegregation ruling when it was issued in 1954. Many experts dispaired that Southeastern public schools would never desegregate.

Then in the fall of 1955, eighty-five brave young Black students from the Scarboro neighborhood in Tennessee broke-through the seemingly-Impenetrable barrier.

Their great courage launched the modern American Civil Rights era.

It was a real game-changer for our nation.

It was extremely difficult (and emotionally-painful) for young Black athletes to break-through the  Southeastern color barrier in public sports.

Two of the Scarboro 85 — Henry Fred Guinn and Lawrence Graham (now Dr. Ahmed Akinole  Alhimisi) — became the very first Black athletes to compete in All-White Southeastern public school (and university) sports on December 3, 1955. They were a part of the pionering mixed-race Oak Ridge High School basketball team.

A third Scarboro 85 student (Robert Berry) joined the Oak Ridge High Freshman Team.

Mixed-Race public school teams were brand-new racial territory back then. They generated high levels of public stress. In reaction, some opposing schools would threatened cancel games, if Black players came to a basketball game with the Oak Ridge High School team.

So — despite their athletic talent and hard-work — Scarboro 85 players had to wait by the phone before a game to see if they could travel with the team.

At the games, the young Black players faced cat-calls of “N-Word” go home — and other racial insults. These experiences left deep emotional scars that lasted all their lives. Can you imagine?

Anderson County helped launch the modern civil rights era, by being the first to desegregate its public schools in the Southeastern United States.

Eighty-Five brave students from the Scarboro neighborhood in Anderson County gave us the first major victory over the repressive Jim Crow racial culture. They successfully opened a path around the Southeast’s unified resistance to the US Supreme Court’s Brown ruling.

Back in 1954 the main question facing the Brown decision was the question of Southern  resistance to school desegregation. Experts warned that the South would never accept mixed classes. Black and White children in the same classroom was unthinkable to the Jim Crow culture.

Widespread violence and perhaps the end of Southeastern public education seemed likely.

The first Southern test came with the Milford 11 students in Southern Delaware in September 1954 — a year before the Scarboro desegregation. The utter failure of this public school desegregation was a direct repudiation of the Brown decision.

Although Delaware is located just-north of the Mason Dixon line, southern Delaware possessed a Deeply-Southeastern culture from nearby rural Virginia.

The failure of the Milford 11 desegregation attempt was widely publicized. It seemed to confirm people’s worst fears: Southeastern states would never agree to desegregate. A year later, eighty-five brave Scarboro students in Anderson County tried again.

This time, the desegregation succeeded thanks to the courage of the Scarboro 85 students, their parents, and teachers — and the support of the people of Anderson County. After all, no desegregation can truly happen without local support.

By the end of 1956, nearly a hundred Black students had enrolled in the White public schools in the County — a wonderful example of Black and White citizens coming together to help unify our nation.

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At the time of the Scarboro 85 desegregation, Ms. Parks was actually in Tennessee attending the famous Highlander Folk School.

It’s documented that she closely monitored the situation and actively considered coming to Oak Ridge — because the desegregation was such a first!

The Sankofa Bird tells us to know our history. The idea is to look back at our past to learn — and then move forward.

It perfectly symbolizes the growth and energy that comes from remembering the inspiring courage of the Scarboro 85 students and their amazing service to America.

It’s about seeking inspiration to tackle challenges in front of all of us — from the important achievements in our past.

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