The beginning was resolute, certain, almost defiant, a double dare to meet the challenge of insult, flagrant insult, the proverbial salt in the wound of the injustice, dismissive, demeaning sting of racism. After many protests and speeches, including sit-ins at Kinsolving Dormitory, our group turned to the courts. The university… read more
A Blessing in Disguise: Top Houston architect shares academic journey during UT’s early days of integration
While growing up in a segregated neighborhood of Houston, Texas, Willie C. Jordan Jr. was taught at a young age to do well in school and avoid trouble. “My siblings and I didn’t have the option to fail,” says Jordan, who was raised in a large 12-sibling family. “Our parents… read more
Harriet Murphy
At a civil rights protest at The University of Texas at Austin in the late 1960’s, Harriet Murphy, UT Law School class of ’69, remembered holding a sign stating ‘Put the black man in the history books.’ Murphy, who went on to serve on the City of Austin Municipal Court… read more
Precursor Stories: Haywood and Alexander
Norcell Haywood: This is Our University Norcell Haywood and his friends Robert Norwood, John Hargis, and Marion Ford were among the first African Americans admitted to The University of Texas in 1954, but they weren’t allowed to attend until more than a year later. “There were no other colleges in… read more
The Intersection of Athletics and Race on the 40 Acres
During a period in American history when the social landscape was rapidly changing, racial advances in collegiate athletics were taking place across the South in the 1950s and 1960s. At the University of Texas (UT), that process proved harder to achieve than many expected as it would take nearly two decades… read more
Henry’s Team | The Legacy of Henry “Doc” Reeves
When discussing the story of integration in the United States it is often never started at the beginning. The “firsts,” the pioneers, are traditionally, incorrectly associated with the vanguard of the Civil Rights era, a time period rooted in challenging the system. But for many institutions, education or otherwise, the… read more
