("Sing a Song of Hope the Present Has Brought Us," Liberty Tribune, 2017)
Triumph
You knew you had to be respectful and responsible. That was the way we lived. No matter where we went, those two things were required of us...not a day goes by where I don't think about Garrison.
Shelton Ponder
What could have been another tragic story became something triumphant. Though they faced inequality, Garrison’s students and staff did their best to thrive despite the odds. The determined African-American community raised up Garrison and triumphed, giving their students a life-changing education.
Liberty's Garrison School is one of the best schools for African-American children in the state.
Edna McKinley, Liberty Courier, 1942
Garrison was the centerpiece of the community. Shelton Ponder is a playwright, poet, and a former Garrison school student. Mr. Ponder’s family, along with many other families in this community, has owned the same house nearby Garrison School for many generations.
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Being reared here, and on this street, and in this neighborhood, was the greatest thing to happen. Because it was all a part of you. Ponder said Garrison didn’t just teach children to read, write or do arithmetic; it taught them how to be “citizens of the world.” Asked if he was ever deterred by racism or segregation, he said no. He did not deny the existence of tragedy; racism and segregation were certainly there. However, Liberty’s African-American community was and still is able to overcome these tragedies of segregation. |
Interview with Shelton Ponder, February 2nd, 2019
The school board commissioned an auditorium and gymnasium and extra classrooms, purchased better heating and plumbing...as well as two hundred steel folding chairs...for Garrison School. Garrison Headmaster Clarence E. Gantt unceasingly strived to improve his students’ quality of education. Mr. Gantt was well-educated, confident, and had the respect and support of both the black and white communities. This support was uncommon for the time and place; other African-American schools in Missouri had very little funding.
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Mr. Gantt had quite an effect on a lot of us. We had a sturdy, complete foundation, but he and the school were an extension of the church and the home...we were still protected, we were taught, were loved, and he helped make us citizens of the world. Therefore, Garrison’s success was almost unprecedented. Thanks to the grit of the staff and students, and the acceptance of the Liberty community, Garrison School was given much better treatment than most other African-American schools in the state. |
In 1954, Brown v. Board of Education made segregation unconstitutional. Although considered a major triumph, integration did not come without its challenges or tragedies...
Liberty High School integrated in 1954...
In light of the ruling of the Supreme Court of the United States and the ruling of the Attorney General of the State of Missouri, and after considerable discussion, it was the action of all Board Members present to integrate High School Students in the district next year. |
This was a rare and triumphant occurrence for a traditionally Southern community. After securing space by passing a bond to build new schools,
elementary schools were desegregated in 1958. |
Many communities resisted integration.In Liberty, integration met with mostly acceptance. Still, Missourians found integration an oftentimes painful process. Students and community members alike had to change what they thought of the world. Garrison students had to leave their beloved school; staff members had to leave it as well, and many lost their jobs. Those who did keep their jobs had half the white teacher's salaries.
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When the well-educated, highly qualified headmaster Clarence Gantt left Garrison to work at the formerly white Liberty High, he was relegated to the position of a study hall monitor. Gantt did not protest. Mr. Gantt exemplified the philosophy of "Lead from where you are. "