Vivian Malone Jones

Apr 20, 2026 - 17:14
0 0
Vivian Malone Jones

Applying to the University of Alabama

← Previous revision Revision as of 11:42, 20 April 2026
Line 76: Line 76:


=== Applying to the University of Alabama ===
=== Applying to the University of Alabama ===
In 1961, Malone had received word from a family friend that the local Non-Partisan Voter League had organized a plan to desegregate the [[University of Alabama]]'s branch school in [[Mobile, Alabama|Mobile]]. Due to her exceptional performance in high school, the organization suggested Malone apply to the Mobile campus. At least 200 black students had applied to the university only to have their applications rejected. The university denied admission to the applicants on the grounds of over-enrollment and closed enrollment, the quotas already being filled or the academic performance of the students not meeting required standards; however, it had become understood by the community that the university would not admit the black students because of resistance to school desegregation.{{Cite web |url=https://docslide.net/documents/freedom-facts-and-firsts-400-years-of-the-african-american-civil-rights-experience.html |title=400 Years of the African American Civil Rights Experience |website=docslide.net |access-date=August 7, 2017 |archive-date=August 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808000156/https://docslide.net/documents/freedom-facts-and-firsts-400-years-of-the-african-american-civil-rights-experience.html |url-status=dead }}
In 1961, Malone received word from a family friend that the local Non-Partisan Voter League had organized a plan to desegregate the [[University of Alabama]]'s branch school in [[Mobile, Alabama|Mobile]]. Due to her exceptional performance in high school, the organization suggested Malone apply to the Mobile campus. At least 200 black students had applied to the university only to have their applications rejected. The university denied admission to the applicants on the grounds of over-enrollment and closed enrollment, the quotas already being filled or the academic performance of the students not meeting required standards; however, it became understood by the community that the university would not admit the black students because of resistance to school desegregation.{{Cite web |url=https://docslide.net/documents/freedom-facts-and-firsts-400-years-of-the-african-american-civil-rights-experience.html |title=400 Years of the African American Civil Rights Experience |website=docslide.net |access-date=August 7, 2017 |archive-date=August 8, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808000156/https://docslide.net/documents/freedom-facts-and-firsts-400-years-of-the-african-american-civil-rights-experience.html |url-status=dead }}


Black students who had applied to the university's branch campus in Mobile were investigated by the university's department of Public Safety, including Malone. After applying to the Mobile branch of the University of Alabama, Malone and her family had been visited by two white men who had claimed that they were representatives of the state. They disclosed that her attempts to apply to the Mobile campus and integrate with the school had instigated violent retaliation from the local white community from which the family would not receive much protection. The threat to her safety did not deter Malone from continuing to support integration in the university and she persisted in applying to the [[University of Alabama]] to earn a degree in accounting. In later interviews, Malone recounted that seeing [[Autherine Lucy|Autherine Lucy's]] initial attempt to desegregate the University of Alabama inspired her to persevere in desegregation work: “I was a child when that happened, but her efforts had an indelible impression on me...I figured if she could do it, I could do it.”{{Cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Richard |date=2022-03-02 |title=Autherine Lucy Foster, First Black Student at U. of Alabama, Dies at 92 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/02/us/autherine-lucy-foster-dead.html |access-date=2025-01-27 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}
Black students who applied to the university's branch campus in Mobile were investigated by the university's department of Public Safety, including Malone. After applying to the Mobile branch of the University of Alabama, Malone and her family were visited by two white men who claimed that they were representatives of the state. They disclosed that her attempts to apply to the Mobile campus and integrate with the school instigated a violent retaliation from the local white community from which the family would not receive much protection. The threat to her safety did not deter Malone from continuing to support integration in the university and she persisted in applying to the [[University of Alabama]] to earn a degree in accounting. In later interviews, Malone recounted that seeing [[Autherine Lucy|Autherine Lucy's]] initial attempt to desegregate the University of Alabama inspired her to persevere in desegregation work: “I was a child when that happened, but her efforts had an indelible impression on me...I figured if she could do it, I could do it.”{{Cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Richard |date=2022-03-02 |title=Autherine Lucy Foster, First Black Student at U. of Alabama, Dies at 92 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/02/us/autherine-lucy-foster-dead.html |access-date=2025-01-27 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}


=== Court cases ===
=== Court cases ===
Read More