Statues commemorate 'Clinton 12' who integrated high school

Statues commemorate 'Clinton 12' who integrated high school

May 17, 2007 

CLINTON (AP) -- Twelve life-size statues were unveiled in Clinton Thursday to commemorate the black students who integrated the Clinton High School in 1956.

The students became known as the "Clinton 12" and were the first to attend a court-ordered desegregated school in the south.

The bronze statues erected outside the Green Mcadoo Cultural Center in Clinton depict the group of students walking to school.

On their first day at Clinton High School on August 27, 1956, the students walked down the hill from their neighborhood and passed hundreds of taunting, angry white people.

The governor at the time sent troops to the small town outside Knoxville to uphold the law.

In 1958, the empty high school was leveled by dynamite on a Sunday morning. The action pulled the community together.

Gov. Bredesen and other dignitaries attended Thursday's ceremony.

Bredesen said he enjoyed getting to know the students and learning about their lives since then.

Copyright 2007 by the associated press. All rights reserved.