KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Baraka Ruhumukiza, a fourth-grade student at Frank Rushton Elementary School, spent a snow day with his classmates unlike a kid usually would.
On Monday, Ruhumukiza and a group of students stood before the Kansas House Committee on Education to urge them to pass HB 2330.
The bill would designate Nov. 14 as "Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day" in Kansas.
On Nov. 14, 1960, Bridges, a six-year-old girl, became one of the first Black students to integrate a school in the South.
Students at Frank Rushton Elementary School in Kansas City, Kansas, have been studying how she made history.
Along with some Kansas legislators, they wanted a permanent designation for Bridges' efforts.
Ruhumukiza spent hours practicing the speech he would give to a room full of state representatives.
"Thank you, Madame Chair," started his speech.
The student told KSHB 41 that he described how brave Bridges was and how she made history by integrating schools.
Another classmate, Vitali Kunakhovich, echoed Bridges' impact.
"She helped people see that Black people should have equal rights," he said.
Bravery, a quality of Bridges, was on full display by the students.
Despite applause, the bill did not pass out of committee.
The kids said they felt a mix of emotions.
"She went through a lot trying to desegregate schools," said Frank Rushton Elementary School student Caleb Orellana Solis, "As a living hero, I feel like when she dies, we should still have a holiday to remember her."
Some state legislators argued that schools in Kansas already celebrate Bridges with a walk-to-school day on Nov. 14, further rejecting that it needed to be put into law.
"If we have another one, then next year there's another one, where does it start and stop?" questioned Rep. Lon Pishny.
Rep. Valdenia Winn, a supporter of the bill, responded, "It's gonna stop when we run out of people that some feel are important enough to recognize."
Frank Rushton Elementary students have been a part of a walk-to-school-day effort along several schools throughout the state.
Last year, it happened in tandem with Ruby Bridges actually making an appearance at Washburn University.
The KCK students were a part of the video that helped nudge her to come.
The Kansas Black Leadership Council (KBLC) also advocated for her presence and HB 2330.
"The first successful student-led sit down was in Wichita in 1958," said Mark McCormick, executive director for KBLC. "This is the last place where we should be dodging this kind of history."
He watched the testimony response from legislators, describing their comments as "cold".
McCormick said, "What it seems like is going on in this country right now, is we want a reconciliation without a reckoning. Whatever you put on the table is dealt with but whatever you leave in the parking lot doesn’t."
Even in defeat, the kids think of what Bridges would do.
Ruhumukiza said even with a "no", he knew she would want them to keep trying.
When bravery isn't enough, the students apply the history of the past to what could be the future.
"Keep walking in life," Solis said. "Not actually walking forward but walking forward in life."
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KSHB 41 reporter Alyssa Jackson covers portions of Johnson County, including Overland Park, Prairie Village and Leawood. Share your story idea with Alyssa.
