Daisy Bates, born on this day in 1914, was an American civil rights activist, publisher, journalist, and lecturer who played a leading role in the Little Rock Integration Crisis of 1957. Daisy's mother was raped and murdered by three white men, who went unpunished.

Bates was active in the NAACP, becoming head of the Arkansas state chapter in the 1950s. In this role, she was essential in helping the Little Rock Nine enroll in a formerly all-white high school, organizing their protection, advising the families, and using her own home as an official checkpoint for the students before and after school.