As Winifred walked into Foster Auditorium, all eyes in the room immediately turned toward her. Only faculty and staff were there. Winifred looked around and did not see even one other student. A handsome, middle age professor with graying temples and a light blue Van Heusen suit approached her at the door. Winifred had never seen him before, but she intuitively knew he was a professor or important administrator. She had never heard a professor or teacher curse until he spoke.
“What the hell are you doing here?” he asked in a stern, reprimanding voice.
Stunned, Winifred answered his question with another. “Where are the students?”
“They followed instructions. Why didn’t you?”
“I’m sorry. I’m not sure what you mean.” Winifred realized this man believed she was intentionally being defiant about something, but what? She composed herself and added, “Here is my postcard for registration. See! It says to register at 11:00 am on Tuesday. That’s why I’m here.”
Winifred was caught off guard. Unlike other students, she had not been informed to register the previous day. For this historic date, the University administration and law enforcement had done everything possible to keep the media and public uninformed and thus, away from the events that were about to happen. There had been no news coverage up until now. Only the undergraduate students living in the dorms had been told they were to register the day before. Since Winifred was not staying in University housing that summer, she didn’t get the message. The handsome professor in the light blue suit was about to explain the situation to Winifred.
“Well apparently you didn’t get the communication follow-up. All White undergraduate students were to register yesterday. The only students who are to register today are the Negro students,” the professor retorted, relaxing his voice just a little.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t get the message. I live in Birmingham and my mother drove me here to register. I know the three courses I need to take. If you will let me pull my cards and register, I will be out of here as quickly as possible.”
The man thought for a minute and then said, “I will accompany you to pull your cards and take you directly to the check out and then you must leave the campus immediately.” And that is exactly what he did while everyone in the auditorium continued to watch Winifred as if she were from some other planet. As Winifred left Foster Auditorium, she finally had a moment to consider what had just happened. And why was she supposed to leave campus immediately? She really couldn’t decipher any of this, but that was about to change quickly.
Outside Foster Auditorium, Winifred couldn’t believe her eyes. Unbeknown to Winifred, President Kennedy had placed the National Guard on active duty. Men in uniforms were armed, standing shoulder to shoulder. She had to walk past all of them to get to the sidewalk. As she walked, she was instructed to hold her ID card and make sure the guards could see her photo to ensure she was, indeed, the student pictured on the card.
As Winifred made her way to the sidewalk on University Boulevard, the carillon of Denny Chimes began to play, temporarily distracting her. She stopped and looked in the direction of the 115 foot structure, relieved to hear its familiar sound. She remembered the day Lee Roy Jordan and Jimmy Sharpe placed their footprints in the cement for the Walk of Fame, surrounding Denny Chimes. And, for some odd reason, she thought of the story she’d been told her freshman year about the legendary structure that had been dedicated 34 years ago. The legend, she was informed, was that every time a virgin passed Denny Chimes, a brick would fall out. So far, Denny Chimes had not lost a single brick.
Winifred hastened toward the Union Building to meet Frances, Trisha, and Helen. As she passed the nursing building, people who worked for the news media began to pass her. They were all scurrying to Foster Auditorium with their microphones, cameras, and crews. No unauthorized personnel or vehicles could be seen anywhere. She was the only one. The television crews began to set up their cameras everywhere. As she observed the commotion, Winifred realized these were not local or state news crews. National news was everywhere. Something that was about to happen would appear on television that night throughout the country and beyond.
As Winifred passed the nursing building, she realized history was in the making and was determined she would not miss it. Her mother, sister, and cousin were safe in the Union Building. She was sorry they were not with her for this momentous occasion, but they would just have to see it on TV that night. She hid behind the bushes of the nursing building, just as a limousine pulled in front of Foster Auditorium. The doors of a black vehicle opened and Governor George Wallace emerged. He walked to the front entrance of the building and stood in front of the door.
During Wallace’s campaign for the gubernatorial race, he made a vow to the people of Alabama. If the federal government tried to intervene with the public schools of the sovereign state of Alabama, he would put a stop to it. As George Wallace promised, he had come to “bar the school house door” at Foster Auditorium, accompanied by a group of state troopers.
The National Guard now lined up on both sides of the walkway. The United States Deputy Attorney General, Nicholas Katzenbach arrived in a three car motorcade. One of the three cars sheltered Vivian Malone and James Hood. Katzenbach and a group of Federal Marshalls walked up the steps to Foster Auditorium. Katzenbach immediately confronted Wallace and demanded that Vivian Malone and James Hood be allowed to register. Wallace refused to move and began reciting a short, symbolic speech about the sovereignty of the great State of Alabama.
Katzenbach returned to his motorcade and discreetly took Vivian Malone and James Hood to their designated dormitories and told them to wait until he came back to retrieve them. They were to have lunch in their respective dining rooms if they became hungry. Kazenbach then contacted President Kennedy, asking him to force Wallace to permit Malone and Hood to register.
Winifred’s beauty and grace had always served her well and they did not fail on this day. It just so happened that as Kazenbach was leaving to take Malone and Hood to their dorms, one of the assistants for the news media came by the bushes where Winifred was crouching. Winifred hoped he wouldn’t see her but he came over to where she was hiding and asked, “What are you doing here?” The guy was young and attractive and he at once noticed how beautiful Winifred was.
“I’m sorry,” she replied. “I was here to register for summer school and I got into the middle of all of this. I just couldn’t leave until I saw what was happening.”
The young man grinned and said, “Well, from what I can tell it has only begun.”
“What do you mean?” asked Winifred.
“The man from the attorney general’s office will be back, I’m sure. This isn’t over by any means,” replied the man from the news crew.
“Well, I have to go. I have to meet my mom and sister at the Union Building and go back home to Birmingham.”
“Good luck!” smiled the man. “Be sure and watch all of this on TV tonight.”
“Don’t worry, I will.”
With that, the assistant returned to his news crew, leaving Winifred in the bushes in front of the nursing building. At that point, she had an idea. After registration, the family was going to Helen’s house for lunch. This was the last day before summer school. There was no need to hurry back to Homewood. She wished Frances, Trisha, and Helen could join her to watch what was about to happen, but she knew her mother would not want to risk it, especially with a nine-year-old daughter. Winifred decided she would take a path parallel to the bushes, go to Martha Parham Hall, and call her mother at the Union Building. She had roomed there her freshman year and would return to Parham Hall in the fall. She decided to tell Frances there was a problem with registration. That was true. She would tell her to go with Trisha and Helen to have lunch at Helen’s house. Winifred would call her when she was ready to go. She planned to go back to the bushes at the nursing building and see what else would unfold that day. After all, that handsome young man had told her the drama was by no means over.
With all of the security