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JOHNNIE ROUSE
Johnnie Rouse, at 15 years old, integrated Norview High School with six other children.
In an interview, Rouse recalled that some students tried to pick fights with her. But she was defiant and stood her ground. "Eventually, she said, they decided she was a little 'crazy' and let her be." Because she wasn't able to buy tickets for school events, she had white friends buy them for her. "She said she was determined to have a high-school experience like anyone else's. 'I said, "I'm not going to be afraid," and I wasn't'." *
About the long-delayed recognition by the City of Norfolk in 2002, Rouse said: "It's truly an honor that somebody recognizes that you were one of the front- runners," she said. "That you made it possible to end . . . separate but unequal."
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Johnnie Rouse leaving Norview High School on her first day of school 2/2/1959. (The Virginian-Pilot photo from a news clipping in the collection of the Women's Council for Interracial Cooperation.) |
* Kruse, Meredith. "Standing up for history; city recognizes former students for their role on racial front line." The Virginian-Pilot, February 27, 2002. (Lexis-Nexis - Link) |
