President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote address at Little Rock Central High School during an event commemorating the 60th anniversary of the school's desegregation, officials will announce today.
The former Arkansas governor and two-term U.S. president will deliver the remarks Sept. 25 in the Roosevelt Thompson Auditorium, the capstone of four days of events remembering the nine children who became the first black students to attend Central High after the U.S. Supreme Court's 1954 desegregation order.
The students, who became internationally known as the Little Rock Nine, entered the school under the protection of federal troops at the direction of President Dwight Eisenhower after Arkansas Gov. Orval Faubus called on the National Guard to block their entry.
Clinton served as Arkansas' governor from 1979-81 and from 1983-92, a combined length of 11 years, 11 months that is longer than any governor in the state's history except for Faubus, who served a full 12 years. Clinton won election to the White House in 1992 and served until 2001.
In 1987, Clinton hosted the Little Rock Nine at the Governor's Mansion, the first time they gathered in Little Rock after the 1958 school year, according to a city news release.
Clinton, who also served as the keynote speaker at the 40th and 50th anniversary commemoration activities, signed legislation in 1998 that designated Central High as a National Historic Site. A year later, he awarded the Little Rock Nine with the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the nation's highest civilian awards, during a White House ceremony.
Other events scheduled for the commemoration -- which is themed "Reflections of Progress" and runs from Sept. 22-25 -- include the dedication of a sculpture on the high school's grounds, an education symposium, a concert fundraiser benefiting the Little Rock Nine Foundation, a panel featuring the Little Rock Nine and an interfaith service.
Rhythm and blues singer Mavis Staples, known for "I'll Take You There" and "Respect Yourself," will headline the concert. The Rev. Raphael Warnock, senior pastor at the Atlanta church where the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once preached, will be the keynote speaker at the interfaith service Sept. 24.
City Manager Bruce Moore, chairman of the committee planning the commemoration events, said Little Rock would formally announce Clinton's participation today.
"We've been working hard for the past year and I'm excited that President Clinton will be able to join us as the keynote speaker for the Commemoration Ceremony to honor these living treasures," Moore said in a statement.
Clinton in April addressed the National Forum for Black Public Administrators, which held its annual conference at the Statehouse Convention Center. He also delivered the commencement address in May 2016 for the 41-person graduating class at his namesake school, the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service.
Metro on 08/30/2017