b. 1910
d. 1994
American politician
Known for his racially divisive tenure as governor of Arkansas, Faubus sided with segregationists in the debate over the federally mandated integration of public schools.
In 1957, Faubus actually went so far as to call out the Arkansas National Guard to prevent black students from attending classes at an all-white school in Little Rock (the state capital). In response to this flouting of the law, President Dwight Eisenhower ordered U.S. Army troops to the Arkansan capital, and the segregationists were foiled.
Ironically, Orval Faubus is immortalized in a traditionally African-American artistic medium: jazz. The song "Fables of Faubus" is a jazz standard written by Charles Mingus, and future generations of Americans are perhaps more likely to learn of Faubus in a jazz appreciation course than a history book.