Sharon La Cruise remembers forgotten female civil rights hero in ‘Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock’

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May 30, 2012

by Olu Gittens, TheGrio

Black journalist and filmmaker Sharon La Cruise has taken a seven-year journey to tell the story of Daisy Bates, the activist and former Arkansas NAACP head who helped organize the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School in 1957. The advocate for a group of students historically called the Little Rock Nine, Daisy Bates was glamorous, outspoken, divisive and at times mysterious.

[…]

Daisy Bates is the subject of La Cruise’s documentary

Bates was an central part of organizing one of the most memorable events of the Civil Rights Movement, yet as a woman her name is largely forgotten in black history. The tale of Daisy Bates is an important one for all those interested in advancing the social perspectives of black women, while filling in the gaps left in our political memory.

Read an interview with the filmmaker here.

Learn about the Little Rock Nine. Read one woman’s journey to discovering her family’s racist history.

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