On the 17th of June the Year 13 Social Studies and History classes made their way over to Rotorua to see Minnijean and her daughter Spirit talk about the experience of being a part of the Little Rock Nine. 

It was truly an unforgettable experience. Hearing first-hand accounts of their experiences and the impact it had on them and history was inspiring and uplifting. The things Minnijean and the other members of The Nine had to face and overcome were eye-opening, the idea of rioting about a minority group joining a school is so foreign in this day and age and the extent to which these rioters went, to the point where The Nine had to have an undercover police escort away from the school is terrifying. Even after the rioters had calmed down, the torment the African-American students went through, including but not limited to battery acid being poured on them, handbags full of locks being hurled at their heads, and of course the obligatory use of the N-word is disgusting and I hope would never be allowed anywhere in the modern day. 

This trip was a great learning experience to get first-hand information about how African-Americans were treated. It allowed the students who attended to better understand how hard some people's lives have been and continue to be, and that despite the fact that things are much better there is still a lot of racism in this world and we need to work to change that.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/little-rock-nine-american-civil-rights-activist-minnijean-brown-trickey-speaks-to-bay-of-plenty-students/GU35HZ6GY5CODJAY2PK36AJWYY/