Special Issue: Fiftieth Anniversary of Brown v Board of Education
Contents
From the Editors

One day in November 1960, Ruby Bridges' mother awakened her and told her to get dressed. The first grader was going to a new school that morning, and Mrs. Bridges asked her to be a good girl and to be brave, for there might be a lot of people outside William Frantz Elementary, a school in the New Orleans public school system. Ruby was accompanied by men she later discovered to be federal marshals; she thought the noisy mob outside the building must mean it was Mardi Gras. While she and her mother waited in the principal's office, the parents of her supposed-to-be classmates marched their children out the door. For the rest of that school year Ruby was the only child in her classroom. As she told Robert Coles, in words that must evoke sadness and pride in parents and non-parents alike,

I knew I was just Ruby, just Ruby trying to go to school. . . . But I guess I also knew I was the Ruby who had to do it—go into that school and stay there, no matter what those people said, standing outside. (Coles, The Moral Life of Children, 9)

That courage and self-awareness helped make Ruby the most famous child of integration. Her experiences inspired Norman Rockwell to paint "The Problem We All Live With" (see it at http://www.nrm.org/eyeopener/eye_problem.html) and provided moving testimony in Coles's Children of Crisis (5 vols., 1967-1977). Several years ago her story was told in a television movie called, simply, "Ruby Bridges" and in a children's book, The Story of Ruby Bridges (1995) also by Coles. Ruby told her own story in a book for middle-schoolers in Through My Eyes (1999), and since 1999 she has headed the Ruby Bridges Foundation, which seeks to educate children about integration and tolerance (see http://www.rubybridges.org/home.htm).

This issue of the SHCY Newsletter commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of Brown v. Topeka Board of Education, the Supreme Court decision that sparked countless stories like Ruby's. The following articles, reviews, and commentary talk about the history and the histories of the event and of the larger civil rights struggle for which the decision was a milestone. But they also talk about the children caught up in the crisis and in the movement, and remind us never to forget the children in children's history.

--Jim Marten

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Contents: Summer 2004

Feature Articles (pdf version)

Regular Columns

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July, 2004
From the Editors:

The Next Issue of the Newsletter: Encyclopedias Devoted to the History of Children and Youth

For the next Newsletter, we are in the planning stages of an issue devoted to the current boom in encyclopedias related to children and youths. Jim is coordinating the work for this issue, and he has already contacted several general editors of recent multi-volume projects to write short pieces on their work. But we would also like to have the thoughts of members on what they think of the phenomenon: the joys and frustrations and strategies of writing entries; the strengths and weaknesses of encyclopedias as teaching tools or research tools; thoughts on why—or why not—at this point in the scholarship on children and youth, encyclopedias are necessary and useful. Those are just a few suggestions. We encourage you to send us other ideas for articles related to this topic. More importantly we encourage you to write for the Newsletter, sharing your experiences with the encyclopedias. We are especially interested in hearing about works that are non-US focused. The Newsletter submissions can be fairly formal essays; pieces that are several paragraphs in length; or simply brief notes with pithy comments. All should be sent to Jim at james.marten@marquette.edu. Note: Jim will check with anyone whose piece he plans to run in its entirety or from which he plan to draw excerpts.

Comings and Goings
Jim Marten Resigns as Newsletter Co-editor
Jim writes: “I'll be stepping down as co-editor of the Newsletter after the winter 2005 issue; I recently became department chair and need to shed a few outside responsibilities (I'll remain as secretary-treasurer of SHCY). But I still plan to coordinate the project for the next newsletter on encyclopedias.” We are looking for a new co-editor who can begin work on the Winter 2005 (#5) issue and take over from Jim for Summer 2005.

Position Open: Looking for New Editor for “News from the Field” Column
Janet Golden and David Pomfret have been diligent editors of the Newsletter column “In the News.” Their notes about conferences and exhibits, recent publications, and news from members have helped create a sense of community among those of us engaged in researching, teaching, and promoting the history of children and youth. And Jim and I thank both of them for their efforts. David will continue as one of the editors of this column, but Janet has asked us to find someone to take over her role. Contact Kathleen or Jim if you are interested. And if you want to know more about what’s required of the column editor, please get in touch with Janet at jgolden@camden.rutgers.edu

We Need Your Help!
We would also like to take this opportunity to invite any member to participate in any aspect of Newsletter production. Propose a new column, volunteer to contribute to one of the regular features, write a special article, develop a theme and act as coordinator for an issue, help design a new layout. We want the Newsletter to represent the interests of SHCY members and to be a useful publication that you’ll take time to read and want to share with others. We can only do that with your help.