Massive resistance
Encyclopedia
Massive resistance was a policy declared by U.S. Senator
Harry F. Byrd, Sr. on February 24, 1956, to unite other white politicians and leaders in Virginia
in a campaign of new state laws and policies to prevent public school desegregation
after the Brown v. Board of Education
Supreme Court
decision in 1954. Although most of the laws created to implement Massive Resistance were negated by state and federal courts by January 1960, some policies and effects of the campaign against integrated
public schools continued in Virginia for many more years; many schools, and even an entire school system, were shut down in preference to integration.
, and the state's senior U.S. Senator, was the leader of the powerful Byrd Organization
. Continuing a legacy of state domination by segregationist Democrats which began after the fall of the Readjuster Party
in the late 19th century, from the mid 1920s until the late 1960s, the Byrd Organization was a political machine
which effectively controlled Virginia politics through a network of courthouse cliques of local constitutional officers in most of the state's counties.
The Byrd Organization's greatest strength was in the rural areas of the state. It never gained a significant foothold in the independent cities
, nor with the emerging suburban middle-class of Virginians after World War II
.
in Virginia through the Jim Crow laws. To complete white supremacy, they also passed a new constitution in 1902 that effectively disfranchised African Americans through restrictions on voter registration. African Americans were deprived of representation until passage of civil rights legislation in the mid-1960s.
Using legal challenges, by the 1940s, black attorneys who included notables such as Thurgood Marshall
, Oliver W. Hill, William H. Hastie
, Spottswood W. Robinson III
and Leon A. Ranson were gradually winning civil rights
cases based upon federal constitutional issues. Among these was the case of Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County
, which was actually initiated by students who stepped forward to protest poor conditions at R.R. Moton High School
, Farmville, Virginia
. Their case became a portion of those heard as part of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education
Supreme Court
decision in 1954. The Brown decision declared that state laws which established separate public schools for black and white students denied black children equal educational opportunities and that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." As a result, de jure
racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause
of the Fourteenth Amendment
, thereby paving the way for integration
and encouraging the Civil Rights Movement
.
To implement Massive Resistance, in 1956, the Byrd Organization-controlled Virginia General Assembly
passed a series of laws known as the Stanley plan
, after Governor Thomas Bahnson Stanley
. One of these laws forbade any integrated schools from receiving state funds, and authorized the governor to order closed any such school. Another of these laws established a three-member Pupil Placement Board that would determine which school a student would attend. The decision of these Boards was based almost entirely on race. Another facet of these laws was the creation of tuition grants which could be given to students so they could attend a private school of their choice; again, in practice, this meant support of all-white schools that appeared as a response to forced integration (the "segregation academies
").
Later in 1956, the NAACP then filed lawsuits around the state in response to these laws in an attempt to force integration of Virginia schools. By 1958, things had come to a head. Federal courts ordered public schools in Warren County
, the cities of Charlottesville
and Norfolk
and Arlington County
to integrate.
Governor James Lindsay Almond, Jr.
ordered the closings of Warren County High School
, two City of Charlottesville schools (Lane High School
and Venable Elementary School), and six schools in the City of Norfolk. While Warren County and Charlottesville were able to cobble together education for their students, Norfolk, being a larger school system, had a harder time, and one-third of the affected students did not attend any school. White parents formed first The Norfolk Committee to Preserve our Schools and conducted letter writing campaigns and petition campaigns. When in the fall of 1958 the six previously all-white junior and senior high schools were not allowed by the state to open, the parents' group was renamed the Norfolk Committee for Public Schools and one of its rallies was featured in a national TV documentary titled The Lost Class of '59. Out of this association, a group of families whose white children were locked out of the closed schools, sued in federal court on the grounds that they were not being granted equal protection under the law, since they had no schools. James v. Almond was heard in November 1958, and the 3-judge panel gave their decision on January 19, 1959, declaring for the plaintiffs and ordering that the schools be opened. The City of Norfolk attempted to prevent the opening by financial maneuvering, but the same 3-judge panel found again for the plaintiffs, and the Norfolk schools were thereby opened at the start of February 1959.
In Prince Edward County
, the schools remained closed until the early 1960s when a suit was finally filed. Having lost James v. Almond, Governor Almond publicly reversed the defiant stance taken only a few months earlier. By changing the state's policy, he earned the wrath of the Byrd Organization and Senator Byrd, who later tried to block his appointment as a federal judge by President John F. Kennedy
.
In 1960, the original three members of the Pupil Placement Board resigned, and the Board was ended by the General Assembly in 1966. But state tuition grants given to children who opted out of public schools helped maintain racially segregated private schools for years.
The public schools in counties in the western part of the state where there were fewer blacks were integrated largely without incident in the early 1960s. Notably, there were no incidents in Virginia which required National Guard
intervention.
Academy (named after a Confederate cavalry leader), one of many "segregation academies", which were private schools opened throughout the state as part of the massive resistance plan. Over the course of the 1960s, white students gradually returned to Warren County High School and the Mosby Academy was closed, eventually becoming the county's middle school
.
Other segregation academies that were formed included Tomahawk Academy (in Chesterfield County
), Huguenot Academy (in Powhatan
), Amelia Academy
, Isle of Wight Academy
, Nansemond-Suffolk Academy
(in Nansemond County
), Brunswick Academy, Southampton Academy
, Tidewater Academy
(in Sussex County
), and York Academy (in King and Queen County
).
closed its entire school system in September 1959 rather than integrate. Prince Edward County was the only school district in the country to resort to such extreme measures. In 1963, schools were ordered to open, and when the Supreme Court agreed in 1964 in Griffin v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, the supervisors gave in rather than risk prison, and public schools were reopened.
During the interruption in access to Prince Edward's public schools, white students were able to get educated at the Prince Edward Academy
, which operated as the de facto
school system, enrolling K-12 students at a number of facilities throughout the county. Even after the re-opening of the public schools, the Academy remained segregated, losing its tax-exempt status in 1978. In 1986, it accepted black students. Today it is known as Fuqua School
.
Other counties, such as Surry County
chose to close only their white schools. White students attended the Surry Academy, and blacks continued to attend the public schools.
" plan, under which families and students could opt to attend the public schools of their choice. However, fear, lack of transportation, and other practical considerations kept most public school students both black and white, in largely (or completely) segregated schools.
, most black students voluntarily chose to attend the George W. Watkins School instead of New Kent High School. However, Calvin Green, a black parent, sued the county school system to force a more radical desegregation scheme. In its decision, the U.S. Supreme Court laid the ground for desegregation busing
plans that caused controversy in Virginia, but more famously in Boston.
The Richmond City Public Schools
had attempted various schemes to avoid integration such as dual attendance zones and the "Freedom of Choice" Plan, but in 1970, District Court Judge Robert Merhige, Jr.
, ordered a desegregation busing scheme established to integrate the city schools. During the years immediately preceding, after an unsuccessful annexation suit against Henrico County
to the north, the city successfully annexed 23 square miles (59.6 km²) of neighboring Chesterfield County
to its south on January 1, 1970 in what was later determined in federal courts to be an attempt to stem the white flight
that was occurring, as well as dilute black political strength. However, beginning the following school year, thousands of white students did not go to the city's schools, instead attending existing and newly formed private schools and/or moving outside the city limits.
In the federal courts, a forced consolidation of the Richmond City, Chesterfield County and Henrico County public school districts was proposed and approved by Judge Merhige in 1971, but the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned this decision, barring most busing schemes that made students cross county/city boundaries. (Note: Since 1871, Virginia has had independent cities
which are not politically located within counties, although some are completely surrounded geographically by a single county. This distinctive and unusual arrangement was pivotal in the Court of Appeals decision). Richmond City Schools then went through a series of attendance plans and magnet school
programs. By 1986, Judge Merhige approved a system of essentially neighborhood schools, ending Virginia's legal struggles with segregation.
In 1970, the Norfolk City Public Schools and several other Virginia communities were also subjected to busing schemes, also returning to more or less neighborhood school plans some years later.
apologized in an editorial for its role and the role of its parent company and sister newspaper in championing massive resistance to human rights, acknowledging that "the Times-Dispatch was complicit" in an "unworthy cause."
"The record fills us with regret, which we have expressed before. Massive Resistance inflicted pain then. Memories remain painful. Editorial enthusiasm for a dreadful doctrine still affects attitudes toward the newspaper."
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Harry F. Byrd, Sr. on February 24, 1956, to unite other white politicians and leaders in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
in a campaign of new state laws and policies to prevent public school desegregation
Desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups usually referring to races. This is most commonly used in reference to the United States. Desegregation was long a focus of the American Civil Rights Movement, both before and after the United States Supreme Court's decision in...
after the Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 , was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 which...
Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
decision in 1954. Although most of the laws created to implement Massive Resistance were negated by state and federal courts by January 1960, some policies and effects of the campaign against integrated
Racial integration
Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation . In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of a culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely...
public schools continued in Virginia for many more years; many schools, and even an entire school system, were shut down in preference to integration.
Byrd Organization
Harry Flood Byrd (1887–1966), Democrat, a former Governor of VirginiaGovernor of Virginia
The governor of Virginia serves as the chief executive of the Commonwealth of Virginia for a four-year term. The position is currently held by Republican Bob McDonnell, who was inaugurated on January 16, 2010, as the 71st governor of Virginia....
, and the state's senior U.S. Senator, was the leader of the powerful Byrd Organization
Byrd Organization
The Byrd Organization was a political machine led by former Governor and U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Sr. that dominated Virginia politics for much of the middle portion of the 20th century...
. Continuing a legacy of state domination by segregationist Democrats which began after the fall of the Readjuster Party
Readjuster Party
The Readjuster Party was a political coalition formed in Virginia in the late 1870s during the turbulent period following the American Civil War. Readjusters aspired "to break the power of wealth and established privilege" and to promote public education, a program which attracted biracial support....
in the late 19th century, from the mid 1920s until the late 1960s, the Byrd Organization was a political machine
Political machine
A political machine is a political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters and businesses , who receive rewards for their efforts...
which effectively controlled Virginia politics through a network of courthouse cliques of local constitutional officers in most of the state's counties.
The Byrd Organization's greatest strength was in the rural areas of the state. It never gained a significant foothold in the independent cities
Independent city
An independent city is a city that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity. These type of cities should not be confused with city-states , which are fully sovereign cities that are not part of any other sovereign state.-Historical precursors:In the Holy Roman Empire,...
, nor with the emerging suburban middle-class of Virginians after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Opposition to racial integration
From the period following Reconstruction in the late 19th century, continuing into the second half of the 20th century, Virginia's conservative Democrats and the Byrd Organization actively worked to maintain legal and cultural racial segregationRacial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
in Virginia through the Jim Crow laws. To complete white supremacy, they also passed a new constitution in 1902 that effectively disfranchised African Americans through restrictions on voter registration. African Americans were deprived of representation until passage of civil rights legislation in the mid-1960s.
Using legal challenges, by the 1940s, black attorneys who included notables such as Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, serving from October 1967 until October 1991...
, Oliver W. Hill, William H. Hastie
William H. Hastie
William Henry Hastie, Jr. was an American, lawyer, judge, educator, public official, and advocate for the civil rights of African Americans...
, Spottswood W. Robinson III
Spottswood William Robinson III
Spottswood William Robinson III was an educator, civil rights attorney and judge.In the early 1950s, Robinson and his law-partner Oliver Hill litigated several civil rights lawsuits in Virginia. In 1951, Robinson and Hill took up the cause of the African American students at the segregated R.R...
and Leon A. Ranson were gradually winning civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
cases based upon federal constitutional issues. Among these was the case of Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County
Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County
Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County was one of the five cases combined into Brown v. Board of Education, the famous case in which the U.S. Supreme Court, in 1954, officially overturned racial segregation in U.S. public schools...
, which was actually initiated by students who stepped forward to protest poor conditions at R.R. Moton High School
R.R. Moton High School
R. R. Moton High School was built in 1939 by Prince Edward County for Negro children, in the colonial-revival style common to school buildings in that era. It replaced several smaller one-room schools scattered around the County....
, Farmville, Virginia
Farmville, Virginia
Farmville is a town in Prince Edward and Cumberland counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 6,845 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Prince Edward County....
. Their case became a portion of those heard as part of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 , was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 which...
Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
decision in 1954. The Brown decision declared that state laws which established separate public schools for black and white students denied black children equal educational opportunities and that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." As a result, de jure
De jure
De jure is an expression that means "concerning law", as contrasted with de facto, which means "concerning fact".De jure = 'Legally', De facto = 'In fact'....
racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause
Equal Protection Clause
The Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "no state shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"...
of the Fourteenth Amendment
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments.Its Citizenship Clause provides a broad definition of citizenship that overruled the Dred Scott v...
, thereby paving the way for integration
Desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups usually referring to races. This is most commonly used in reference to the United States. Desegregation was long a focus of the American Civil Rights Movement, both before and after the United States Supreme Court's decision in...
and encouraging the Civil Rights Movement
Civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
.
Circumventing Brown ruling by new state efforts to maintain segregation
Senator Byrd, representing Virginia in the U.S. Congress, waged vocal and bitter opposition to the high court's ruling and subsequent actions to implement public school integration in Virginia. Leading the state's Conservative Democratic political machine, on February 24, 1956, he declared a campaign which became known as "Massive Resistance" to avoid compliance. Byrd stated: "If we can organize the Southern States for massive resistance to this order I think that in time the rest of the country will realize that racial integration is not going to be accepted in the South."To implement Massive Resistance, in 1956, the Byrd Organization-controlled Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
passed a series of laws known as the Stanley plan
Stanley plan
The Stanley plan was a package of 13 statutes adopted in September 1956 by the U.S. state of Virginia designed to ensure racial segregation in that state's public schools despite the ruling of the Supreme Court of the United States in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, 347 U.S. 483 ....
, after Governor Thomas Bahnson Stanley
Thomas Bahnson Stanley
Thomas Bahnson Stanley was an American politician, manufacturer and Holstein cattle breeder.-Early life:...
. One of these laws forbade any integrated schools from receiving state funds, and authorized the governor to order closed any such school. Another of these laws established a three-member Pupil Placement Board that would determine which school a student would attend. The decision of these Boards was based almost entirely on race. Another facet of these laws was the creation of tuition grants which could be given to students so they could attend a private school of their choice; again, in practice, this meant support of all-white schools that appeared as a response to forced integration (the "segregation academies
Segregation academies
Segregation academies are private schools started in the United States during the 1950s, '60s, and 70s as a way for white parents to avoid the desegregation of public schools as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling Brown v...
").
Later in 1956, the NAACP then filed lawsuits around the state in response to these laws in an attempt to force integration of Virginia schools. By 1958, things had come to a head. Federal courts ordered public schools in Warren County
Warren County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 31,584 people, 12,087 households, and 8,521 families residing in the county. The population density was 148 people per square mile . There were 13,299 housing units at an average density of 62 per square mile...
, the cities of Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
and Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
and Arlington County
Arlington County, Virginia
Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The land that became Arlington was originally donated by Virginia to the United States government to form part of the new federal capital district. On February 27, 1801, the United States Congress organized the area as a subdivision of...
to integrate.
1958-59 massive resistance vs. the courts
In response, VirginiaVirginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
Governor James Lindsay Almond, Jr.
James Lindsay Almond, Jr.
James Lindsay Almond, Jr. was a United States federal judge and politician. He served as the 58th Governor of Virginia from 1958 until 1962.-Early life:...
ordered the closings of Warren County High School
Warren County High School (Virginia)
Warren County High School is located in Front Royal, Virginia. It was, for nearly 80 years, the only public high school in Warren County, Virginia. The mascot is a Wildcat and its colors are maroon and white. Warren County competes in VHSL activities in the Evergreen District, Region II, Group AA...
, two City of Charlottesville schools (Lane High School
Lane High School
Lane High School, in Charlottesville, Virginia, was a public secondary school serving residents of Charlottesville and Albemarle County from 1940 until 1974. It was an all-white school until its court-ordered integration in 1959; black students attended Jackson P. Burley High School. It became too...
and Venable Elementary School), and six schools in the City of Norfolk. While Warren County and Charlottesville were able to cobble together education for their students, Norfolk, being a larger school system, had a harder time, and one-third of the affected students did not attend any school. White parents formed first The Norfolk Committee to Preserve our Schools and conducted letter writing campaigns and petition campaigns. When in the fall of 1958 the six previously all-white junior and senior high schools were not allowed by the state to open, the parents' group was renamed the Norfolk Committee for Public Schools and one of its rallies was featured in a national TV documentary titled The Lost Class of '59. Out of this association, a group of families whose white children were locked out of the closed schools, sued in federal court on the grounds that they were not being granted equal protection under the law, since they had no schools. James v. Almond was heard in November 1958, and the 3-judge panel gave their decision on January 19, 1959, declaring for the plaintiffs and ordering that the schools be opened. The City of Norfolk attempted to prevent the opening by financial maneuvering, but the same 3-judge panel found again for the plaintiffs, and the Norfolk schools were thereby opened at the start of February 1959.
In Prince Edward County
Prince Edward County, Virginia
Prince Edward County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,368. Its county seat is Farmville.-Formation and County Seats:...
, the schools remained closed until the early 1960s when a suit was finally filed. Having lost James v. Almond, Governor Almond publicly reversed the defiant stance taken only a few months earlier. By changing the state's policy, he earned the wrath of the Byrd Organization and Senator Byrd, who later tried to block his appointment as a federal judge by President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
.
In 1960, the original three members of the Pupil Placement Board resigned, and the Board was ended by the General Assembly in 1966. But state tuition grants given to children who opted out of public schools helped maintain racially segregated private schools for years.
The public schools in counties in the western part of the state where there were fewer blacks were integrated largely without incident in the early 1960s. Notably, there were no incidents in Virginia which required National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
intervention.
Segregation academies
Lane High School and Venable Elementary School reopened in February 1959. However, when Warren County High School re-opened, it was ironically as an all-black school, as no white students attended. Their parents had opted instead to send their children to the John S. MosbyJohn S. Mosby
John Singleton Mosby , nicknamed the "Gray Ghost", was a Confederate cavalry battalion commander in the American Civil War...
Academy (named after a Confederate cavalry leader), one of many "segregation academies", which were private schools opened throughout the state as part of the massive resistance plan. Over the course of the 1960s, white students gradually returned to Warren County High School and the Mosby Academy was closed, eventually becoming the county's middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
.
Other segregation academies that were formed included Tomahawk Academy (in Chesterfield County
Chesterfield County, Virginia
Chesterfield County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. In 2010, its population was estimated to be 316,236. Chesterfield County is now the fourth-largest municipality in Virginia . Its county seat is Chesterfield...
), Huguenot Academy (in Powhatan
Powhatan County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 22,377 people, 7,258 households, and 5,900 families residing in the county. The population density was 86 people per square mile . There were 7,509 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...
), Amelia Academy
Amelia Academy
Amelia Academy is an independent co-educational college preparatory school in Amelia, Virginia. The campus is located within the rural Piedmont region of central Virginia.-History:...
, Isle of Wight Academy
Isle of Wight Academy
Isle of Wight Academy , founded in 1967 as a segregation academy, is an independent, non-sectarian, co-educational nonprofit day school located in Isle of Wight County, Virginia...
, Nansemond-Suffolk Academy
Nansemond-Suffolk Academy
Nansemond-Suffolk Academy is an independent school in Suffolk, Virginia, founded in 1966.-Athletics:The Nansemond-Suffolk Academy football team was commended by the Virginia General Assembly in 2010.-External links:*http://www.nsacademy.org/...
(in Nansemond County
Nansemond County, Virginia
Nansemond County is an extinct county which was located in Virginia Colony and the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, from 1646 until 1972...
), Brunswick Academy, Southampton Academy
Southampton Academy
Southampton Academy is a small, private college-preparatory school located at 26495 Old Plank Rd. in Courtland, Virginia. Southampton Academy, also known locally as "The Academy" and "SA" provides education for students from pre-kindergarten through the 12th grade...
, Tidewater Academy
Tidewater Academy
Tidewater Academy is a private school in Wakefield, Virginia. Established in 1964, the school serves students in preschool through grade 12 and is accredited by the Virginia Association of Independent Schools.-History:...
(in Sussex County
Sussex County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,504 people, 4,126 households, and 2,809 families residing in the county. The population density was 26 people per square mile . There were 4,653 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile...
), and York Academy (in King and Queen County
King and Queen County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 6,630 people, 2,673 households, and 1,897 families residing in the county. The population density was 21 people per square mile . There were 3,010 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile...
).
Prince Edward County: no public schools 1958-1964
When faced with an order to integrate, Prince Edward CountyPrince Edward County, Virginia
Prince Edward County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,368. Its county seat is Farmville.-Formation and County Seats:...
closed its entire school system in September 1959 rather than integrate. Prince Edward County was the only school district in the country to resort to such extreme measures. In 1963, schools were ordered to open, and when the Supreme Court agreed in 1964 in Griffin v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, the supervisors gave in rather than risk prison, and public schools were reopened.
During the interruption in access to Prince Edward's public schools, white students were able to get educated at the Prince Edward Academy
Fuqua School
Fuqua School is a private primary and secondary school located in Farmville, Virginia. It is named after J.B. Fuqua, who made a large contribution to the school in 1992 to save it from financial insolvency...
, which operated as the de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
school system, enrolling K-12 students at a number of facilities throughout the county. Even after the re-opening of the public schools, the Academy remained segregated, losing its tax-exempt status in 1978. In 1986, it accepted black students. Today it is known as Fuqua School
Fuqua School
Fuqua School is a private primary and secondary school located in Farmville, Virginia. It is named after J.B. Fuqua, who made a large contribution to the school in 1992 to save it from financial insolvency...
.
Other counties, such as Surry County
Surry County, Virginia
As of the census of 2010, there were 7,058 people, 2,619 households, and 1,917 families residing in the county. The population density was 24 people per square mile . There were 3,294 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...
chose to close only their white schools. White students attended the Surry Academy, and blacks continued to attend the public schools.
Freedom of Choice: most public schools remain segregated
Massive resistance was initially replaced by a "Freedom of ChoiceFreedom of Choice (US school desegregation)
Freedom of Choice was the name for a number of plans developed in the US during 1965-70, aimed at the integration of schools in states that had a segregated educational system.- The Plans :...
" plan, under which families and students could opt to attend the public schools of their choice. However, fear, lack of transportation, and other practical considerations kept most public school students both black and white, in largely (or completely) segregated schools.
Federal courts order busing programs
By 1968, the continued slow pace of integration was frustrating the federal courts. In New Kent CountyNew Kent County, Virginia
At the 2000 census, there were 13,462 people, 4,925 households and 3,895 families residing in the county. The population density was 64 per square mile . There were 5,203 housing units at an average density of 25 per square mile...
, most black students voluntarily chose to attend the George W. Watkins School instead of New Kent High School. However, Calvin Green, a black parent, sued the county school system to force a more radical desegregation scheme. In its decision, the U.S. Supreme Court laid the ground for desegregation busing
Desegregation busing
Desegregation busing in the United States is the practice of assigning and transporting students to schools in such a manner as to redress prior racial segregation of schools, or to overcome the effects of residential segregation on local school demographics.In 1954, the U.S...
plans that caused controversy in Virginia, but more famously in Boston.
The Richmond City Public Schools
Richmond City Public Schools
This school division contains public schools serving the independent city of Richmond, Virginia. It is occasionally described locally as Richmond City Public Schools to emphasize its connection to the independent city rather than the Richmond-Petersburg region at large or the rural Richmond County...
had attempted various schemes to avoid integration such as dual attendance zones and the "Freedom of Choice" Plan, but in 1970, District Court Judge Robert Merhige, Jr.
Robert R. Merhige, Jr.
Robert R. Merhige Jr. , was a federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia who is known for his rulings on desegregation in the 1970s....
, ordered a desegregation busing scheme established to integrate the city schools. During the years immediately preceding, after an unsuccessful annexation suit against Henrico County
Henrico County, Virginia
Henrico is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. As of 2010, Henrico was home to 306,935 people. It is located in the Richmond-Petersburg region and is a portion of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area...
to the north, the city successfully annexed 23 square miles (59.6 km²) of neighboring Chesterfield County
Chesterfield County, Virginia
Chesterfield County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. In 2010, its population was estimated to be 316,236. Chesterfield County is now the fourth-largest municipality in Virginia . Its county seat is Chesterfield...
to its south on January 1, 1970 in what was later determined in federal courts to be an attempt to stem the white flight
White flight
White flight has been a term that originated in the United States, starting in the mid-20th century, and applied to the large-scale migration of whites of various European ancestries from racially mixed urban regions to more racially homogeneous suburban or exurban regions. It was first seen as...
that was occurring, as well as dilute black political strength. However, beginning the following school year, thousands of white students did not go to the city's schools, instead attending existing and newly formed private schools and/or moving outside the city limits.
In the federal courts, a forced consolidation of the Richmond City, Chesterfield County and Henrico County public school districts was proposed and approved by Judge Merhige in 1971, but the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned this decision, barring most busing schemes that made students cross county/city boundaries. (Note: Since 1871, Virginia has had independent cities
Independent city
An independent city is a city that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity. These type of cities should not be confused with city-states , which are fully sovereign cities that are not part of any other sovereign state.-Historical precursors:In the Holy Roman Empire,...
which are not politically located within counties, although some are completely surrounded geographically by a single county. This distinctive and unusual arrangement was pivotal in the Court of Appeals decision). Richmond City Schools then went through a series of attendance plans and magnet school
Magnet school
In education in the United States, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities as school zones that feed into certain schools.There are magnet schools at the...
programs. By 1986, Judge Merhige approved a system of essentially neighborhood schools, ending Virginia's legal struggles with segregation.
In 1970, the Norfolk City Public Schools and several other Virginia communities were also subjected to busing schemes, also returning to more or less neighborhood school plans some years later.
Historical reaction
On July 16, 2009, the Richmond Times-DispatchRichmond Times-Dispatch
The Richmond Times-Dispatch is the primary daily newspaper in Richmond the capital of Virginia, United States, and is commonly considered the "newspaper of record" for events occurring in much of the state...
apologized in an editorial for its role and the role of its parent company and sister newspaper in championing massive resistance to human rights, acknowledging that "the Times-Dispatch was complicit" in an "unworthy cause."
"The record fills us with regret, which we have expressed before. Massive Resistance inflicted pain then. Memories remain painful. Editorial enthusiasm for a dreadful doctrine still affects attitudes toward the newspaper."
Artistic interpretation
In 2009, as part of their "American Soil Series", the Virginia Stage Company featured "Line in the Sand", a play by Chris Hannah. "Line in the Sand" captures the emotions and tensions in Norfolk during massive resistance in both the political arena and through the eyes of the students of the "Lost Class". http://www.vastage.com/about/past_playsSee also
- The "Southern ManifestoSouthern ManifestoThe Southern Manifesto was a document written February–March 1956 by Adisen and Charles in the United States Congress opposed to racial integration in public places. The manifesto was signed by 101 politicians from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South...
," a document written in 1956 by legislators in the United States CongressUnited States CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
opposed to racial integration in public places - Civil Rights MovementCivil rights movementThe civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
External links
- "The Ground Beneath Our Feet" website
- "They Closed Our Schools," the story of Massive Resistance and the closing of the Prince Edward County, Virginia public schools
- Edward H. Peeples Prince Edward County (Va.) Public Schools Collection photographs, documents, and maps exploring the history of the Prince Edward County school segregation issues of the 1950s and 1960s, from the collection of the VCU Libraries.