It’s one of the most famous moments to happen on the front steps of Arkansas’ Capitol: In 1968, Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller was the only Southern governor to hold a public memorial following the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination.
The indelible image of a white governor joining hands with Black mourners to sing “We Shall Overcome” was needed to heal a city that was just a couple hours away from where King was killed.
The moment was also a reminder of how Arkansas shines the best when its leaders find ways to highlight the importance of civil rights rather than shy away. Arkansas needs to find more avenues to do so, even in a hyperpartisan environment.
The state’s move nearly a decade ago to remove Robert E. Lee’s name from the state holiday honoring King was a step in the right direction. The joint holiday honoring the civil rights icon alongside the Confederate general had become an embarrassment for the state, especially as pictures of the state notices about the joint holiday gained traction on social media.
That embarrassment was enough for Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson to add the issue to his legislative agenda and take the rare step of testifying before a legislative committee in favor of it.
The state has made other signs of progress, at least symbolically.
The decision to replace one of the state’s statues in the U.S. Capitol with one of Daisy Bates, the civil rights leader who mentored the nine students who integrated Central High School, was a necessary statement to be made in a building where statues of Confederate leaders can still be found.
A lesser but still significant step was taken by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signing legislation creating a specialty license plate honoring the Central High historic site.
But elsewhere there have been stumbles and missed opportunities. That includes the effort to no longer honor the Confederacy with one of the stars on Arkansas’ flag, a proposal that failed before a legislative committee. Similarly, a bid to end the state’s commemoration of “Confederate Flag Day” passed the House in 2021 but failed before a Senate panel.
The current political climate isn’t encouraging for another attempt at these measures. President Donald Trump has defended Confederate figures and symbols, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has taken moves to restore the names of Confederate generals to military bases.
Sanders has echoed Trump’s rhetoric complaining about “indoctrination” in the classroom, with a law she signed prohibiting critical race theory from being taught in public schools that’s sparked a legal fight. The prohibition has also drawn criticism from civil rights groups who say the restriction threatens to whitewash history. A federal appeals court panel last year allowed the law to be enforced in the state.
Arkansas is running out of opportunities to properly honor that history instead of engaging in fights over it. Many of the leaders and key figures of the Civil Rights Movement are gone, including Claudette Colvin, who died last week. Two of the Little Rock Nine have died, leaving only seven of those civil rights icons left.
Next year marks 70 years since the Little Rock desegregation crisis, and it may be one of the last times that an anniversary can be commemorated with most of the Little Rock Nine on hand. The sad truth is that despite the symbolic progress that’s been made, Arkansas remains a state where symbols and monuments of the Confederacy significantly outnumber tributes to the state’s civil rights icons.
It’s easy to echo talking points about heritage and much harder to admit that true patriotism requires embracing a full history. It requires elevating civil rights heroes, and acknowledging a country and state’s shameful past.
Finding a way to do so in this environment might be the best monument.
Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Andrew DeMillo for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com.