
“It was extraordinary. They were courageous individuals,” Hastings said. “They were pioneers, leaders, people that took the early nastiness — nooses at the lockers, in their rooms, and things of that nature. … They were the ones that took the initial thrust of desegregation. … They were doing that on-the-ground work, laying the foundation for what we have now: a black sheriff [in Broward County], lots of black police officers throughout the country, black police chiefs.”