7 Chapter 7- Riots in the Streets of New Orleans

When Ruby went to a new school, some people were angry. They did not like black and white children in the same school. They stood outside of the school and shouted. They were not happy about white and black kids going to schools together.

In New Orleans, people were very upset. They protested violently in the streets. This is called ‘rioting’. During riots people threw things and made big fires. It was a scary time. Hospitals got busy. At night, some people set crosses on fire in black neighborhoods. They wanted to scare the black families.

The Ku Klux Klan (an organization of white racist people) did not want black and white children together. They set fires in front of black people’s homes. This was to make them afraid.

Some white parents were also angry. They went to the government building in Baton Rouge. They did not want the judge to mix the schools. They said he must be fired.

It was a hard time in New Orleans when schools were changing.