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The Unforgettable Day They Integrated Norfolk Schools

Photo credit: Jessica Copeland/ Spartan Echo Norfolk 17 members (left to right) Delores Johnson Brown, Olivia Driver Lindsay, Andrew Heidelberg, Patricia Turner, and Geraldine Talley Hobby pose with a poster of a picture of all the original 17 students.

By Jennifer Jiggetts
Black College Wire

Feb. 9, 1959, is a day Olivia Driver Lindsay says she�ll never forget. It�s the day she and 16 other black students integrated the all-white public schools in Norfolk, Va.

But it�s also the day that people threw sticks and rocks at her. Some even spat. On a day full of insults, the most haunting was that Norfolk police officers shielded white students, allowing them to taunt young black people who simply wanted to attend school.

Lindsay is one of five members of the �Norfolk 17� who visited Norfolk State University on Feb. 10. They told the story of how they entered six previously all-white schools. The occasion was a community forum celebrating the 50th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education, which sought to end segregation in public schools.

Geraldine T. Hobby, a Norfolk 17 member, said the first weeks of school were the most challenging. Hobby had lived in New Jersey. She said she was shocked when she moved to Virginia and saw firsthand how blacks were treated.

�It was different because I went to a white school in West Orange, N.J., and was treated like a queen by the white kids,� she said.

Lindsay said her experiences were eye-opening as well, and compared walking through the school�s halls with walking through a gantlet.

�I developed eyes on the sides and back of my head. I had eyes everywhere,� she said.

Andrew Heidelberg recalled one incident when a white student was beaten after talking to a black student.

�People hated us. They hated us with a passion,� said Heidelberg, with tears forming in his eyes.

Heidelberg said he was treated more normally than most black students because of his athletic skills.

�I saw a different side of white people once I became a football star,� Heidelberg said.

Many black students were afraid for their lives and took extreme measures, like avoiding school rest rooms, Heidelberg said.

Delores Johnson Brown said black students often endured the abuse in silence. She recalled the time a white boy tripped her as she walked to class. After picking up her books, Brown realized her hand had been cut.

�I just covered up my mouth and didn�t say anything,� she said.

One thing that each of the 17 said helped during the difficult times was faith.

�Without the faith and training to endure pain and suffering, I wouldn�t have made it,� Hobby said. �We were called and chosen for that purpose.�

Lindsay agreed.

�If I wasn�t strong, I would�ve lost my mind,� she said.

While black students endured racist behavior from their white peers, some black students found other blacks �- adults as well as children -- were not supportive.

�We were ostracized on both sides,� Lindsay said. Even among blacks, the Norfolk 17 were sometimes taunted as �white kids.�

Brown said although her experiences were hurtful, she doesn�t regret them.

�I thank God I had the opportunity to pave the way for someone else,� said Brown confidently.

Hobby said she was sorry that despite their sacrifices, today�s public school system is still segregated.

�The war is still on and segregation is not dead,� Hobby said. �Integration has not won. It�s masquerading under something else,� she added.

Maurice Cole, an adjunct history professor at Norfolk State and a Norfolk native, had been out of high school for two years during the time of the Norfolk 17, but remembers the trials his younger siblings endured.

�They experienced some agitation,� Cole said. �My sisters stood out and were able to excel despite the pressures.�

Cole said that despite segregation, �black students had the best of everything because all the talent was there and everyone knew everyone.�

Many students like Kemal Nelson, a finance major from Connecticut, said the forum was useful because of students' limited knowledge of history.

�I liked the event,� he said. Although he was aware of the Little Rock Nine, he said he did not know about the Norfolk 17 before the event.

James Brown, a history professor at Norfolk State, said most students do not understand history as they should.

�It�s more real and impactful to hear it from the horse�s mouth,� said Brown, who taught Norfolk 17 member Patricia Turner at the university.

Jennifer Jiggetts, a student at Norfolk State University, writes for The Spartan Echo.

Posted March 1, 2004