This article also partially published in Northwest
Arkansas Living™ Magazine
Apartments Edition |
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Elizabeth Eckford Desegregates at Tyson; |
The Legacy of One of the Little Rock Nine |
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| ...section of the Tyson Foods Corporate Offices, and then at about noon
the group of an estimated 150 to 200 guests moved to an older Tyson executive auditorium
facility. The desegregated auditorium group then got a little bigger as a few more members
from the community as well as a few school children joined to hear the remarks from the
keynote speaker.
The function, which was billed as a part of Tyson's new, "Inclusion and Engagement
series," began with a Civil Rights Movement prayer and song, the black Negro anthem,
"Lift Every Voice and Sing." That was a real eye opener for me - to see that
happening at the corporate offices of Tyson Foods. It is also interesting to note that
Tyson Foods has a new Faith Based Services department for its employees. It is clear that
change is underway at the world's largest meat and poultry producer. That's a bold step if
I ever saw one. |
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Elizabeth Eckford, Meets &
Greets Mother & Daughter |
Picture Courtesy: Danielle L. Wood, U of A Recruiter |
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Eurydice S. Stanley, Ph.D.,
Delivers Original Work |
Picture Courtesy: Eurydice S. Stanley, Author
& Poet |
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After "Lift Every Voice and Sing" was sung, original poetic work by one of
Little Rock's up and coming literally beacons was delivered. United States Army Major and
Ph.D. Eurydice S. Stanley delivered three useful and inviting poems to the crowd. Dr.
Stanley then described a very adverse time in her life, where two Southern peace officers
allegedly placed her in handcuffs for looking like a "15-year-old runaway," and
then "took her to jail" (she told the crowd that she was not anywhere near the
age of 15 when the event happened).
After the delivery by Dr. Stanley, Mr. Hosto Gonzalez from |
| Tyson's Faith Based Services department led the crowd in a second prayer.
He said, before introducing Eckford, that this was a "very different |
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| corporate America." Soon after Mr. Gonzalez finished with the prayer
and speech about some of the bold programs going on at Tyson, Elizabeth Eckford then took
the floor and offered a personal account of the 1957 bloody stain which was etched into
the very fabric of the Arkansas school system for more than 50 years. Civil
Rights Icon Drives History Home
The
self-described, "ordinary person" and "thank you 'lawdie' graduate,"
which was a play on words that Eckford used to describe her time in college, was nothing
but serious in describing that very dark day in September of 1957, "September 4 to be
exact," she said, "when the school turned away all people of color, including
the cafeteria staff, that attempted to enter Little Rock Central High; the teachers
made... |
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