Civil Rights Activist To Speak To Thousands On Discrimination, Tolerance

SAN RAMON, CA — A civil rights activist who was one of the students involved in the desegregation of public schools in Arkansas during the 1950s will speak to thousands of students and staff members from the San Ramon Valley Unified School District on Thursday and Friday, according to district officials.

Terrence Roberts was a member of the "Little Rock Nine," a group of nine African American students who in 1957 were the first black students to attend classes at Central High School, an all-white school in Little Rock.
The desegregation of Little Rock schools came on the heels of the historic 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown vs. Board of Education, which ended legal segregation in public schools.

District officials said Roberts will speak about his experiences as a high school student who stood up against discrimination and said that his visit is a part of the district's focus on creating opportunities for open and honest conversations about the impact of words and actions. He will speak to students at Monte Vista High School in Danville on Thursday morning and then to district administrators in the afternoon and
to school staff on Friday morning.

Superintendent Rick Schmitt said in a statement that the "incredible message" from Roberts transcends generations.

"History matters. It is through understanding the road we have traveled that we can accept different viewpoints and each other. I am so grateful that Dr. Roberts is willing to share his message of being an
upstander to discrimination with our community. His message can only shift one's perspective as we better understand what it means to fight for equality," Schmitt said.

Schools in the district have recently been under fire after racist messages were discovered in bathrooms on several occasions. In late October, racial slurs were found scrawled on the bathroom walls in two separate incidents at California High School in San Ramon.

Additionally, in November an African American student at Monte Vista High School also discovered racist graffiti in one of the school's bathrooms. The incident left the teen's mother worried about the safety and
well-being of her children in the school district.

According to district officials, at the beginning of this academic year an Equity Task Force was created in partnership with the Anti-Defamation League on the "No Place for Hate" program, a national movement led by students and educators who are committed to using the power of positive peer influence to build inclusive and safe schools in which all students can thrive.

By Bay City News

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