[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 153 (Thursday, September 13, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1254]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 REMEMBERING THE DESEGREGATION OF STRATFORD HIGH SCHOOL IN NASHVILLE, 
                               TENNESSEE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JIM COOPER

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 13, 2018

  Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remember Stratford High 
School and the Nashville community on the55th anniversary of the 
school's desegregation. On that remarkable day, four twelve-year-old 
girls courageously walked into Stratford High School prepared to change 
history and open the doors of opportunity for all.
  The lessons of Nashville's involvement in the Civil Rights Movement 
are still teaching us how to build a more perfect union. In a 1960 
speech in Nashville, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, ``I came to 
Nashville not to bring inspiration, but to gain inspiration from the 
great movement that has taken place in this community.'' Equal access 
to quality education, like that provided at Stratford, is vital to 
growing leaders who will inspire generations to come.
  In 1963, just a few days after Dr. King was murdered, Bernadine Price 
Rabathaly, Beverly Page Ward, Brenda Harris Haywood, and Pamela 
Franklin walked into school and were greeted with hate. With the help, 
encouragement, and protection of the school's Assistant Principal, 
Ronald Webb, the students overcame obstacles that no students should 
face and helped change our nation forever.
  As we reflect on the past, let us remember and thank these heroic 
individuals for their relentless efforts in making our community a 
stronger place, and realize we still have a lot of work to do.

                          ____________________