School Desegregation and U.S. Presidents

The Supreme Court's Brown v Board of Education of Topeka Kansas decision of 1954 yielded unwavering and contentious mass resistance to dismantling the legally sanctioned dual system of public schooling in the United States. Extensive literature exists that focuses on the action of the courts, legislative actions of the federal government, and actions of local politicians and school districts addressing the challenges posed in transitioning from a legalized racially segregated system to a nationally integrated school system. School Desegregation and US Presidents chronicle a different look at the nation's attempt to address the landmark decision...THE POWER OF THE PRESIDENCY...Receiving short shrift in the literature has been the use and effect of the" bully pulpit" of seven Presidents providing leadership to resolve those issues related to the implementation of the mandates of Brown. It examines how the various symbolic and political powers of each President were exercised to advance or stall progress in desegregating the country's schools. Words matter! In accessing the bully pulpits of each of the Presidents, significant examples of their voices are provided through excerpts of their speeches, press coverage, and excerpts with cabinet members or other administration officials and civil rights leaders.

LaRuth Gray’s new volume fills a gaping hole in the story of American school desegregation: what role did post-World War II American presidents play in dismantling or encouraging racial discrimination in the nation’s schools? Historians of the future will find valuable new insights into presidential decision-making in the vivid portraits Gray provides of what was going on in the White House under presidents from Eisenhower to Reagan., Public education in America is a function of our politics, and few issues have been as controversial as school desegregation. Yet, politics is the art of the possible, and as LaRuth Gray shows in her new book, American Presidents post-Brown used their positions differently to push for a new reality in our schools and communities. Language and leadership matter, and the unique bully pulpit of the President of the United States can further our collective vision for a better society or retrench from it. Dr. Gray’s depiction of how our nation’s top leaders used their positions to spur states and local communities to implement Brown, or allowed them to run from it, offers telling insight into why we’re still fighting over the same issues so many years later. The valuable insight that this book provides into the highest levels of leadership of our past can hopefully spur today’s leaders to use their positions to finally realize the values and ideals that our nation stands on., LaRuth Gray’s history of US presidents’ views and voices on segregation offers a fascinating account of how the torturous path to integration – still unfinished – has been shaped by our highest elected leaders. She places their use of the bully pulpit in the context of their life experiences and beliefs, as well as the politics of the times, and deepens our understanding of how pitfalls have emerged and how progress can be made. A must read for everyone who cares about where America has been and where it is going with respect to racial equity and the creation of common ground on which we can all stand together., Dr. LaRuth Gray who, because of her new book, confirms that she is a scholar and master storyteller. In this carefully crafted study she examines the role of each of the seven presidents following the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling. She shows how each considered whether to use, or not use, the “Bully Pulpit” to influence acceptance of school desegregation. For career educators this is a page-turner that spells out the contemporary factors influencing those decisions, as well as the impact on school children. By doing so, Dr. Gray has further clarified our understanding of this important period in our history., Gray’s book offers a compelling view of the power of the Presidential “bully pulpit” and its' use over time to influence the course of school desegregation. Meticulously researched portraits of the Eisenhower through Reagan eras provide fascinating insights on how these Presidents chose to use (or not use) words and actions to advance, stall or impede progress on school desegregation. The book provides that rare combination … it both informs and challenges readers’ knowledge and understanding of this complex subject.

LaRuth H. Gray dedicates herself to improving the quality of education, the quality of life for children(particularly those of vulnerable populations), and social issues that address equity and opportunity. Retired Deputy Director to Pedro Noguera of NYU"s Steinhardt's School of Education's Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools, Gray is also a retired Superintendent of Schools in Westchester County, NY