if he firmly supported preventing the desegregation of the school he would get his third term. His plan worked.The night before the Little Rock Nine were to go to Central High School, Gov. Faubus appeared on television and stated that he would have the Arkansas National Guard in front of the school to prevent the black children's entry. He claimed that it was "for the protection of the children". Faubus had no proof yet he claimed that a violent resistance had been planned and this was for the good of the blacks. Faubus created a self-fulfilling prophecy and sure enough, a violent mob stood outside the school the following day. Daisy Bates, the president of the NAACP at the time, had called all of the children to her house the morning they were to attend Central High School. Only eight were in attendance. Elizabeth Eckford did not have a phone and missed the call. The girl was unaware of the plans to drive to Fourteenth Street together. While the eight, along with Daisy Bates tried to gain access on Fourteenth Street, Elizabeth Eckford faced a mob of some 200 white people shouting and threatening her alone on Sixteenth Street. The National Guard prevented entry to the school on both sides. Elizabeth escaped the crowd onto a bus with the assistance of a white lady named Grace Lorch.Faubus met with President Eisenhower on Sept. 14. The Arkansas governor had hoped to convince the president to help him defy the federal court order. Eisenhower refused and suggested that Faubus use the National Guard to protect the black students. Instead, Faubus withdrew himself and the National Guard from the school and left the students to fend for themselves. The next day, another mob awaited the students' arrival. Three black reporters had traveled to the school in a car in front of the Little Rock Nine. Unaware that the nine were planning on entering a side door, the three reporters pulled up to the front steps. When word got out that the nine had saf...
