The Challengers: Untold Stories of African Americans Who Changed the System in One Small Southern Municipality

The Challengers features the 63 black residents who sought public office in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas. The book introduces the candidates and discusses the conditions of which they filed, ran, lost, and won from 1954–2010. The Challengers reveals how the changing forms of government and the systems of voting directly impacted the electoral process in the black community. Through lawsuits, activism, and political participation, these candidates fought for their voices to be heard. Hot Springs is the town where former president Bill Clinton launched his political career and developed an abiding relationship with the African American electorate. These stories, encapsulated here for the first time, begin with the behind-the-scenes account of how a black man won a citywide election at a time when voting rights were under attack during the Jim Crow era. The story emerges in the modern era with barrier-breaking profiles of the first African American mayor of Hot Springs and the first African American Hot Springs School Superintendent. Presented by the NAACP Writing Project in Hot Springs, this book can serve as a model for local NAACP chapters throughout the nation. Now other civic organizations and civil rights groups are challenged to document the black political history in their municipalities. This project was made possible in part by contributions from the Clinton Family Foundation, the Arkansas Humanities Council, the Arkansas Black History Commission, and the Oaklawn Scholarship Foundation. “This indispensable book tells the story of Hot Springs’ African American community through its political aspirations from 1954–2010, a story that has never before been documented. Elmer Beard and the NAACP Writing Project Committee of NAACP Branch #6013 deserve the highest accolades for their exhaustive research and for their commitment to preserving the stories of the remarkable men and women in this book.” Elizabeth Robbins, Executive Director, Garland County Historical Society “I commend the NAACP Writing Project Committee for its extraordinary effort in preserving the history of African American involvement in the political process in the Spa City. This book demonstrates the courage of ordinary people who were determined to make a positive difference in the Hot Springs community. It’s a treasure of information which I hope inspires greater participation in the political process by all people.” Darrin L. Williams, CEO, Southern Bancorp “Elmer Beard’s study of African American candidates for public office in Hot Springs and Garland County is a must read for students of local history and politics. With painstaking research he describes the political efforts of 63 African Americans who both won and lost contests over a period of more than a half century. On a personal note, the African American community gave me strong support in my elections for county judge, and I am happy to read about some of my friends in this book.” Larry Williams, Garland County Judge 1995–2010 “[This] provides an engaging look into the sociopolitical landscape of the City of Hot Springs, Arkansas, as it grapples with tense race relations before and after Jim Crow. At times humorous, other times tragic, but ultimately inspiring, this firsthand account underscores the importance of the continuing work of racial equality and social justice both locally and nationally.” Minister Marsalis Weatherspoon, Hot Springs, Arkansas

For the last 50 years, Elmer Beard has been a prominent leader in the African American community in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, where he and his late wife Dorothy reared their son and two daughters. A retired college professor and K-12 educator, Beard has a bachelor’s degree in English from Arkansas Baptist College in Little Rock and a master’s degree in education from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Beard was an eight-term city councilman and is currently the self-appointed political griot of the Spa City. He has spent his career documenting the strides and struggles of black political candidates there. In The Challengers, Beard joins the local chapter of the NAACP to record profiles of the 63 black residents from 1954–2010 who dared to make a difference in their communities. This is first book.