Answer:
"Don't be afraid." That's what Ruby Bridges's mother told her on Nov. 4, 1960. Little Ruby
listened carefully to the advice. Soon, four United States federal court marshals, or officers,
arrived at the Bridges family home in New Orleans, Louisiana to drive the first grader to
William Frantz Public School. A screaming mob was waiting.
For a long time, parts of the United States were segregated, or separated by race. Under
law, black children could not attend the same public schools as white children. People of
different races also had to use separate public restrooms and drinking fountains.
