Orval Faubus

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The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Orval Faubus

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | 2008 | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Orval Faubus , 1910-94, governor of Arkansas (1955-67), b. Combs, Ark. A schoolteacher, he served in World War II and after the war became Arkansas's state highway commissioner. Elected to the governorship after a runoff, Faubus initially pursued a liberal course in office but to combat his political opponents who were staunch segregationists, he adopted a hard-line civil-rights position. In 1957, Faubus gained national attention when he called out the Arkansas National Guard to prevent the integration of Central High School in Little Rock, but he was eventually forced to withdraw the Guard. After rioting broke out, President Dwight D. Eisenhower sent U.S. troops to Little Rock and put the National Guard under federal command in order to ensure the integration of the school. Faubus's political expediency resulted in his repeated reelection as governor but also prevented him from moving into the national political arena. In 1970, 1974, and 1986 he sought reelection as governor of Arkansas but was unsuccessful in each attempt at a political comeback, the last time losing to Bill Clinton .

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Faubus, Orval E. 1910-

American Decades | 2001 | Copyright 2001, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

FAUBUS, ORVAL E. 1910-

Governor of arkansas (1954-1967)

Reputation as a Segregationist

Known as a strong segregationist, Gov. Orval Faubus brought about the single most controversial reaction to Brown v. Board of Education, Topeka, Kansas in 1957. Earlier in the year Faubus signed four bills that created an anti-integration investigation committee; authorized parents to refuse to send their children to integrated schools; required organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to publish membership roles and financial data; and authorized the use of school-district funds to hire lawyers and pay for other legal costs to fight integration. He was determined to keep Arkansas segre-gated despite federal rulings to the contrary.

Little Rock Crisis

The events in Little Rock shook the country, and the American public viewed Faubus several times on television defending his segregationist beliefs. He saw the black students as the "cause" of the problems and encouraged violence to maintain the status quo. As federal troops took control of the situation, Faubus charged that the president had overstepped his authority by interfering with state and local rights to control education. Over the next two years Faubus emphasized the theme of federal abuse of power, charging that Supreme Court decisions were illegal and continuing the debate over the proper actions for Little Rock schools to take.

His Popular Appeal

Faubus's political career boomed after Little Rock. In 1958 Faubus won an almost unprecedented third term as governor in a Democratic primary (he would go on to a fifth term). Generally viewed as a rejection of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's use of federal troops in Little Rock, the vote was cited by Faubus as evidence that his stand against integration had the support of the people of Arkansas. The governor would not give up despite signs that the federal government would support integration. At the close of the decade Faubus pledged to continue the fight and stated "mass integration would not be accepted."

Sources:

Elizabeth Huckaby, Crisis at Central High School (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1980);

Robert Sherrill, Gothic Politics in the Deep South: Stars of the New Confederacy (New York: Grossman Publishers, 1968).

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School segregationist, former Arkansas Gov. Orval E. Faubus, dies. (Obituary)
Magazine article from: Jet; 1/9/1995; 283 words ; Former Arkansas Gov. Orval E. Faubus, 84, whose refusal to let nine Black...troops, recently died in Conway, AR. Faubus, who had suffered from spinal cancer...the school year. In 1969, at age 59, Faubus divorced after 37 years of marriage... Read more
Faubus: The Life and Times of an American Prodigal.
Magazine article from: Washington Monthly; 11/1/1997; ; 700+ words ; ...one of the book's best qualities. Orval Faubus' futile defiance of the federal...the Ozarks Back at the beginning, Orval Faubus seemed just about the least likely...rings with eloquent authenticity. Orval Faubus weighed two-and-a-half pounds at... Read more
Little Rock crisis panel chafes, inspires grown-up Arkansas child: panel was brilliant analysis of crisis' role in civil rights movement.(CONVENTION 2008)
Magazine article from: The Masthead; 12/22/2008; ; 553 words ; ...to school. I grew up thinking that Orval Faubus, the governor who stood in their...the school desegregation crisis. Faubus was governor for a long time, presiding...memories of '57 were still fresh. Faubus lost and despite several attempts... Read more
Little Rock on Trial: Cooper v. Aaron and School Desegregation.(Brief article)(Book review)
Magazine article from: ForeWord; 11/1/2007; ; 247 words ; ...nine African-American youths against Orval Faubus, the stubborn and deceitful Arkansas...1954 Brown decision and required Faubus to desegregate Central High School...Marshall led the successful challenge to Faubus. The victory was short lived, however... Read more
'The Ernest Green Story' tells how black students integrated Little Rock school amid violence. (television special)
Magazine article from: Jet; 1/25/1993; 487 words ; ...confrontation provoked by Gov. Orval Faubus to test that decision. Filmed entirely...known two governors of Arkansas - Orval Faubus, who sent the Arkansas National...Marshall) and James Harper (Governor Faubus). Eric Laneuville, a 1992 Director... Read more
Who is Moe Hickey? (Maurice L. Hickey, president and publisher of the Arkansas Gazette newspaper)(includes related article)
Magazine article from: Arkansas Business; 6/17/1991; ; 700+ words ; ...Stephens sits down to another of his famous daily luncheons in the Stephens Building, he might join political pals such as Orval Faubus, religous leaders such as Catholic High School's Father George Tribou or multimillionaire businessmen such as Win Paul... Read more
Why political cartoonists sell out; in the rave for national fame, they ignore what matters at home.
Magazine article from: Washington Monthly; 9/1/1988; ; 700+ words ; ...board by the embarrassing antics of Orval Faubus, the segregationist governor of Arkansas...A classic Fisher cartoon depicted Faubus as Betsy Ross-sewing George Wallace...the American flag. In going after Faubus, remembered one of Fisher's old editors... Read more
Jury trials and Gerrymanders: the legal effort to maintain segregation in July of 1957.
Magazine article from: The Historian; 6/22/2006; ; 700+ words ; ...seen in the Deep South, and Governor Orval Faubus was considered a moderate on race...that classes would begin, Governor Faubus, asserting that it was a state's...to this tree. (1) For three weeks, Faubus maintained his blockade, preventing... Read more
Another move.(Outtakes: an inside look into Arkansas media)
Magazine article from: Arkansas Business; 1/19/2004; ; 80 words ; ...Record at Huntsville. The newspaper has a paid circulation of about 5,000. Its publishers are sisters Ellen Kreth and Fara Faubus, granddaughters of former Gov. Orval Faubus, who inherited the paper when their grandmother; Alta Faubus, died in 2002. Read more
Counts, Will. A Life Is More Than a Moment: The Desegregation of Little Rock's Central High.(Young adult review)(Brief article)(Book review)
Magazine article from: Kliatt; 7/1/2007; ; 227 words ; ...High. Indiana Univ. Press. 79p. illus. c1999. 0-253-21793-6. $19.95. JSA* Fifty years ago, in September 1957, Governor Orval Faubus ordered out the Arkansas National Guard to prevent nine black students from registering at Little Rock's Central High... Read more

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