Local woman one of the first African-American students at Plant City High School.
Historical records chronicle trailblazing African Americans throughout history for their remarkable individual achievements. In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first African American major league baseball player in more than 50 years, breaking through baseball’s color line that had relegated African American players to the segregated Negro Leagues. Actor, director and author Sidney Poitier, born to Bahamian parents, broke racial barriers and stereotyping in the film industry to become one of the leading African American actors of the 20th century.
Trailblazers in Plant City may not be recognized for their accomplishments, but their bravery and actions have left a legacy that can be seen and felt in the city today. In September 1965, more than a decade after Supreme Court justices ruled that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional in its landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case, two Bealsville residents, Constance Holloman-Butler and June Thomas, became Plant City High School’s first African American students.
Holloman-Butler, whose father worked in a phosphate mine during the day and would farm their land in the evenings and mother was P.T.A. president, said her parents always stressed the importance of education. “They didn’t want their children to work in the fields,” she said. “They believed education was a way to have better opportunities so they told me and my seven siblings to stay in school, study hard and pay attention in class.”
Lessons learned at home set her up for success. Her teachers at Glover, who recognized her excellent grades in academics as well as in conduct (in ‘olden days’ students earned grades in behavior as well as reading and math), suggested to her parents that instead of attending Marshall High School, the Black high school, she attend Plant City High. Her parents, Alphonso and Eathelle Holloman, went to the school and registered her as an incoming sophomore.
“One day my mother told me I was going to be integrating Plant City High,” she recalled. “Back then you obeyed your parents and when they told you to do something you did it.”
They told her she would be representing not just her family but the community. “They said I had to carry myself well and maintain my stature by representing the Black race and those who’d be coming behind us,” she said.
On the first day of school, the bus picked June and her up at 6:30 a.m. Other students gave her a wide berth. “Nobody sat next to me, in front of me or behind me but the bus driver maintained order,” she recalled. When she got to school, someone gave her a class schedule. She tried to sit in the second row in each classroom. “I didn’t want to sit in the first row,” she said.
It wasn’t long before she realized she was put in the remedial classes. She told her mother she was learning material that she had already mastered. Her mother went to the school and spoke to the principal and she was put in more suitable classes. She took Latin, Spanish and Typing, which helped her create a successful career as an administrative assistant.
She doesn’t remember any instances of prejudice from her teachers. “They were there to teach and that’s what they did,” she said.
Students were a different story. She remembers walking down the hallways and hearing comments about the world coming to an end. She said she never flinched. “I just kept my eyes straight ahead and kept walking,” she said. Eventually the comments stopped. “They got used to us being there,” she said. “We even formed a few friendships with white students as they realized we were just as intelligent, but they weren’t the lasting kind.”
Holloman-Butler didn’t have time to participate in extra-curricular activities. After school, she went straight home to help her parents in the field, planting or picking whatever fruit or vegetable was in season. Besides spending time with her family, it was a lonely existence because she had lost touch with many of her Black friends, who attended Marshall High School. Between working with her family and attending school, it didn’t leave time for much else.
She only recalled one incident that has remained with her all these years. As a teacher was dismissing the class, a male student who had been asked to close the windows using a long pole, held the pole across the doorway as she was trying to exit the room, blocking her way. When she went home and told her mother, she made another visit to the principal’s office. “The federal marshals were called and they threatened him, telling him what he did was a federal offense and he could be sent to prison,” she said. Marshals asked her parents if they wanted to prosecute but they declined. He never bothered her again. “That same guy asked me to dance at my junior or senior prom, we danced together and I was just amazed,” she said. “I went home and told my mom and she laughed.”
Thomas moved in 1967 but Holloman-Butler graduated in 1968 with several other African American students. “I remember walking on stage, getting my diploma and then that was that,” she said. Holloman-Butler started at Florida A & M University that fall.
The lessons learned while at Plant City High were immeasurable. “I learned that I’m stronger than I thought I was and challenged me to do and be better,” she said. “I knew I was smart but I strived harder so I could compete with students that had more advantages than I did.”
She realized she could interact with people of all races and that everyone should be treated with respect. Her experiences helped shaped her life. “It made me see whatever obstacle I’m facing, maintaining and keeping a strong mind and work ethic will help me overcome whatever is standing in my way,” she said.
