Warriors Don't Cry: Chapters 3–8

by Melba Pattillo Beals
In 1957, Melba Pattillo was one of a group of teenagers who integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. In this memoir, she describes her fight to survive and thrive in the sometimes violent aftermath of the Supreme Court decision that declared segregation unconstitutional.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Introduction–Chapter 2, Chapters 3–8, Chapters 9–16, Chapters 17–21, Chapters 22–28
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. lapse
    pass into a specified state or condition
    Otherwise, I felt I was pretty safe in that field—safe enough to lapse into my daydreams.
  2. injunction
    a judicial remedy to prohibit a party from doing something
    That month, a Mrs. Clyde Thomason, secretary of a new group called the League of Central High Mothers, filed a petition for an injunction to keep the Little Rock school board from carrying out its gradual integration plan.
  3. emphatic
    spoken with particular stress
    Conrad asked if he could go, too. Grandma India said an emphatic "No."
  4. inquisition
    a severe interrogation
    All the while I was trying to back away from their harsh inquisition.
  5. bearing
    characteristic way of holding one's body
    She was regal in her bearing and, like all of us, very serious about her studies.
  6. pallor
    an unnatural lack of color in the skin
    Small like Elizabeth, but with a very pale complexion, her wise eyes peered through thick-lensed horn-rimmed glasses. She had a heart problem that, at times, changed her pallor to a purplish hue and forced her to rest on her haunches to catch her breath.
  7. haunch
    the upper thigh and back of the hip in human beings
    Small like Elizabeth, but with a very pale complexion, her wise eyes peered through thick-lensed horn-rimmed glasses. She had a heart problem that, at times, changed her pallor to a purplish hue and forced her to rest on her haunches to catch her breath.
  8. meticulous
    marked by precise accordance with details
    Gloria Ray was another member of my Sunday School class. Delicate in stature, she was as meticulous about her attire as she was about her studies.
  9. uppity
    arrogant or self-important
    I could barely get my good morning in because she was talking very loud, attracting attention as she told me I was too fancy for my britches and that other people in our community would pay for my uppity need to be with white folks.
  10. aback
    by surprise
    Taken aback by her anger, I stood perfectly still, stunned.
  11. feisty
    showing spirit and courage
    Her laughter and upbeat attitude always cheered me up. People said I had some of her feisty ways in me.
  12. sassy
    improperly forward or bold
    "Rules are made to be broken," she said. "If there's anyone who can integrate that school, it's you. You're just sassy enough to pull it off."
  13. heckler
    someone who tries to embarrass you with gibes and objections
    Following that speech, calls from telephone hecklers began to drive us wild.
  14. ashen
    pale from illness or emotion
    As she held the phone to her ear, she stood motionless and silent and her face grew ashen and drawn.
  15. rivet
    hold someone's attention
    Everyone's attention seemed riveted on the center of the line of soldiers where a big commotion was taking place.
  16. furor
    a sudden outburst, as of protest
    Most people ignored us, jostling each other and craning their necks to see whatever was at the center of the furor.
  17. hub
    a focal point around which events revolve
    Finally, we got closer to the hub of activity.
  18. accost
    approach and speak to someone aggressively or insistently
    Panic-stricken, I wanted to shout for help. But I knew it would do no good. Policemen stood by watching Elizabeth being accosted. Why would they help us?
  19. muse
    reflect deeply on a subject
    "Maybe things got mixed up. Perhaps the governor had them there to keep peace, and they mixed up their orders," Grandma mused.
  20. dismally
    in a dreadful manner
    "You know the effort they made to integrate over in North Little Rock failed dismally," Mother Lois said.
  21. pretense
    the act of giving a false appearance
    "Yes," I answered in a polite tone, dropping my pretense. The voice wasn't at all familiar to me.
  22. marksman
    someone skilled in shooting
    Grandma was an expert marksman.
  23. feign
    give a false appearance of
    Mama had a sad look in her eyes, although she feigned a smile as she kissed me.
  24. humdrum
    not challenging; dull and lacking excitement
    "Davies, from Fargo, North Dakota, who described his career as 'humdrum,' had landed in the middle of a racial battle that may have repercussions for the entire South," the article said.
  25. testy
    easily irritated or annoyed
    ...the paper said the fifty-two-year-old judge could sometimes be testy and speak brusquely.
  26. brusquely
    in a blunt direct manner
    ...the paper said the fifty-two-year-old judge could sometimes be testy and speak brusquely.
  27. tarry
    stay longer than you should
    She was polite but firm in explaining we had lots of chores to do and couldn't tarry.
  28. gripe
    a complaint or objection
    "Every minute of every day. I feel like a prisoner in my own house," I said. Mother walked ahead of us, ignoring our gripes.
  29. rambling
    spreading out in different directions
    Mrs. Bates's home, a long, rambling ranch-style house, was set on the side of a hill.
  30. seasoned
    rendered competent through trial and experience
    Jefferson joined the other boys in their skit, making more fun of our predicament. We girls could not match the boys' humor. They were like three seasoned comics performing at their peak on a nightclub stage.
  31. clique
    an exclusive circle of people with a common purpose
    By this time of the year, had I been in my own school, my friends would have begun to form cliques.
  32. parasol
    a handheld collapsible source of shade
    She was dressed in churchgoing clothes, her Ladies Day outfit, a blue suit with a matching hat that swooped down from its mischievous perch on the side of her head. “Well, don't just stand there, child, help me find my parasol."
  33. bigotry
    intolerance and prejudice
    “If you live in Arkansas," the ad read, “study this picture and know shame. When hate is unleashed and bigotry finds a voice, God help us all."
  34. grope
    search blindly or uncertainly
    “Girlfriend?" I repeated the word, desperately groping to find just the right response. I'd never been asked before.
  35. pulpit
    a platform raised to give prominence to the person on it
    From the pulpit, the minister looked down on us, two hundred or so parishioners seated in that magnificently spacious room with a ceiling that rose two stories above us.
  36. respite
    a pause from doing something
    The President had agreed to give the governor a ten-day respite to sort out his response to the court order.
  37. drawl
    a slow speech pattern with prolonged vowels
    He spoke like somebody on television, his sharp, quick New York accent overlaying a slight Southern drawl.
  38. throng
    a large gathering of people
    During the meeting, the upstairs had filled with a throng of news people, most of them white, with just a sprinkling of our people.
  39. incendiary
    inciting action or rebellion
    States'-rights advocates from surrounding Southern towns were up in arms. They were headed for Little Rock to add to the incendiary feelings in our town.
  40. hooligan
    a rowdy, violent, and typically youthful troublemaker
    The Arkansas National Guard remained at Central High, and hooligans rampaged through the streets.
Created on Tue Sep 03 20:03:42 EDT 2019 (updated Wed Oct 16 11:36:29 EDT 2019)

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