Ole' Miss graduate Verna Bailey visits Santa Clara

By Paolo Posadas

"I just felt so lonely. This was absolute loneliness that I had," recalled Verna Bailey, as she described her experiences as the first black female to attend Ole' Miss (University of Mississippi). Enrolled at a school that was outwardly hostile to her presence, Bailey faced her trials alone.

Without a roommate, Verna Bailey's only source of support was the telephone to call her family every night. She was supposed to have a private line, but other students got her phone number and would call her at all hours of the night. "Nigger bitch, go back to your cotton field. You bitches don't belong here," male voices hissed at her. The telephone was a vital connection to her supportive family, but also a harsh reminder of how loathed she was at Ole' Miss.

The 1954 ruling by the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education banned segregation in public schools. It would be 11 more years of struggle before Verna Bailey would be able to set foot on the Ole' Miss campus.

After graduating from Ole' Miss with an undergraduate degree in Sociology Bailey went on to a career in education. Presently, Verna Bailey is a principal at Montclair Academy in Beaverton, Oregon.

In 2001, more than 30 years after leaving the school that shunned her, a scholarship was established in her honor. The Verna A. Bailey scholarship is a $100,000 endowment in the Women's Studies department.

The 56-year-old Verna Bailey shared her experiences last Thursday in the Williman room to a crowd of 15 people. Her talk is one of many events taking place on-campus in honor of Black History Month. The speaker was co-sponsored by Igwebuike, the Black Student Union, and the Center for Multicultural Learning.

Verna Bailey's daughter, Asha Wilkerson, is a sophomore at Santa Clara. Wilkerson said she brought her mother to campus because her story is inspirational. "Santa Clara needs to hear more stories like hers because I know that a lot of people here do not see the struggle that African-Americans have gone through and continue to go through on a regular basis," said Wilkerson. The mother and daughter are from Portland, Ore.

Events like these that highlight black achievements are important because history books have often disregarded their accomplishments," said Igwebuike member Jessica Fairbanks.

"Celebrating Black History Month can help black students realize their value and worth in society and help to eradicate the long-standing belief that blacks had nothing to contribute to our nation," she added.

Verna Bailey was born and raised in the deep south of Jackson, Mississippi. Racism permeated the region like the muggy, still air. At 13, she was arrested for reportedly disobeying a policeman's orders. The police officer told her: "Niggers don't sit on park benches." Verna Bailey, exhausted from standing all day, stayed seated in defiance.

At the station, the detectives arrogantly asked her, "Why are you trying to overthrow the state of Mississippi?" Samuel Bailey, her father, disgusted at the treatment his little girl had received, reprimanded the detectives, telling them "If you don't want my daughter sitting on a park bench, take the damn benches out." To this day the zoo still doesn't have park benches, Verna Bailey jokingly told the audience, thanks to a little girl who decided to visit the zoo with her friends.

Verna Bailey grew up in an environment knowing things needed to change. Her father pushed for registration drives for blacks. Her father's best friend was slain civil rights leader, Medgar Evers. She also once worked as a typist for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Following in the footsteps of close family friend James Meredith, the first African-American male to enter Ole' Miss, Verna Bailey became the first black female to enroll at the university, attending from 1965 to 1968.

"I felt that I should follow in James Meredith's footsteps. If he could open those doors, we didn't want the doors to close," said Verna Bailey. In the midst of adversity, Verna Bailey found instances of solace. Many of the blacks on campus worked as servants in the cafeteria, on the grounds, and in the dorms. She said the workers would sometimes sneak a smile, or a wink at her, but they were always fearful of getting caught and being fired.

The "experience, though not very pleasant at times, gave me a sense of determination and fortitude that I probably would not have otherwise achieved," said Verna Bailey.

David DeCosse, director of Campus Ethics Programs for the Markkula Center, called Verna Bailey "incredibly courageous" and "a person of dignity."

"One of things I thought listening to her was that this was a deeply moving story of African-American courage, but that it was also a deeply moving story of human courage," DeCosse added.

ààààSophomore Igweuike member Terrence Boyd, Jr. found himself inspired by her message. "It is important to see successful black leaders because they are the ones who encourage, inspire and motivate blacks to be anything their heart desires," said Boyd.

Verna Bailey has paved a path, helping to lead the way for minorities to enter universities. However, she said that when she set out for Ole' Miss she "never thought about being a pioneer or anything. Things like that didn't cross my mind."

û Contact Paolo Posadas at (408) 554-4546 or jposadas@scu.edu.