Massive Resistance was a policy declared by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Sr., to unite other white Virginian politicians and leaders in taking action to prevent school desegregation after the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision in 1954. Seal of the Senate The United States Senate is one of the two chambers of the Congress of the United States, the other being the House of Representatives. ... Harry Flood Byrd, Sr. ... State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner (D) Senators John Warner (R) George Allen (R) Official language(s) English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ... Desegregation is the process of ending racial segregation, most commonly used in reference to the United States. ... Holding Racial segregation in public education violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment; separate facilities are “inherently unequal. ... Seal of the Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States of America. ... 1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In 1956, the Virginia General Assembly passed a series of laws to implement massive resistance. One of these laws forbade any integrated schools from receiving state funds. Another of these laws established a three-member Pupil Placement Board that would determine which school a student would attend. Of course, 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.") 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Virginia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Virginia. ... Segregation academies were part of a policy of massive resistance declared by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Sr. ...

Later that year, the NAACP then filed lawsuits around the state in response to these laws in an attempt to force integration of Virginia schools. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP, is one of the oldest and most influential civil rights organizations in the United States. ...

By 1958, things had come to a head. Federal courts ordered schools in Warren County, Charlottesville, Norfolk and Arlington to integrate. Location in the state of Virginia Formed 1836 Seat Front Royal Area  - Total  - Water 560 km² (216 mi²) 7 km² (3 mi²) 1. ... Founded Incorporated 1762   County Independent City Mayor David Brown Area  - Total  - Water 177. ... Norfolk is a city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States of America. ... Arlington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia (which calls itself a commonwealth), directly across the Potomac River from Washington, DC. By an act of Congress July 9, 1846, the area south of the Potomac was returned to Virginia effective in 1847 As of 2000...

In response, Virginia Governor Lindsay Almond ordered the closings of Warren County High School, of two Charlottesville schools, Lane High School and Venable Elementary School and of six schools in 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. Several white parents in Norfolk began agitating against the schools remaining closed. State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner (D) Senators John Warner (R) George Allen (R) Official language(s) English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ... Categories: Wikipedia cleanup | Stub | 1898 births | 1986 deaths | Governors of Virginia ...

In January 1959, the Virginia Supreme Court declared most of the General Assembly massive resistance laws unconstitutional, ending massive resistance at the state level. In landmark speech, Governor Almond publicly reversed the defiant stance taken only a few months earlier. Schools that had been closed were re-opened in February. In 1960, the original three members of the Pupil Placement Board resigned, and the Board was ended by the General Assembly in 1966. The Supreme Court of Virginia is one of the oldest continuous judicial bodies in the United States. ... The Virginia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Virginia. ...

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. Mosby Academy, one of many "segregation academies" opened throughout the state as part of the massive resistance plan. Gradually 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. Location in the state of Virginia Formed 1836 Seat Front Royal Area  - Total  - Water 560 km² (216 mi²) 7 km² (3 mi²) 1. ...

Lane High School and Venable Elementary School also re-opened in February 1959.

When faced with an order to integrate, Prince Edward County closed its entire school system in September 1959 rather than integrate. The county kept its entire school system closed until 1964. 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. Location in the state of Virginia Formed 1754 Seat Farmville Area  - Total  - Water 916 km² (354 mi²) 3 km² (1 mi²) 0. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... De facto is a Latin expression that means in fact or in practice. It is commonly used as opposed to de jure (meaning by law) when referring to matters of law or governance or technique (such as standards), that are found in the common experience as created or developed without...

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. Other segregation academies that were formed included Tomahawk Academy (in Chesterfield County), Huguenot Academy (in Powhatan), Amelia Academy, Isle of Wight Academy, Brunswick Academy, Southampton Academy, Tidewater Academy in Sussex County, and York Academy (in King and Queen County. Surry County is a county located in the state of Virginia. ... Location in the state of Virginia Formed May 25, 1749 Seat Chesterfield Area  - Total  - Water 1,132 km² (437 mi²) 29 km² (11 mi²) 2. ... Powhatan County is a county located in the state of Virginia. ... Sussex County is a county located in the state of Virginia. ... King and Queen County is a county located in the Middle Peninsula in the state of Virginia. ...

Counties in the western part of the state where there were fewer blacks integrated largely without incident in the early 1960s. Notably, there were no incidents in Virginia which required National Guard intervention.

Massive resistance was initially replaced by a "Freedom of Choice" 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.

By 1968, the continued slow pace of integration was frustrating the federal courts. In New Kent County, 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 busing plans that caused controversy in Virginia, but more famously in Boston. New Kent County is a county located in the state of Virginia. ... Alternative meanings: Boston (disambiguation) The 18th-century Old State House in Boston is surrounded by tall buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries. ...

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 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 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. This school district contains schools located in Richmond, Virginia. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Robert R. Merhige Jr. ... Forced busing is the concept of achieving racial or economic integration in United States public schools by transporting schoolchildren to schools outside their area of residence. ... Location in the state of Virginia Formed 1634 Seat Richmond Area  - Total  - Water 634 km² (245 mi²) 17 km² (7 mi²) 2. ... Location in the state of Virginia Formed May 25, 1749 Seat Chesterfield Area  - Total  - Water 1,132 km² (437 mi²) 29 km² (11 mi²) 2. ... White flight is a colloquial term for the demographic trend of upper and middle class white people moving away from (predominantly non-white) inner cities, finding new homes in nearby suburbs or even moving to new locales entirely, e. ...

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. 1871 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... An independent city is a city that does not form part of another local government entity. ... In the U.S. system of education, a magnet school is a public school that draws students interested in specific subjects such as academics or the arts from the surrounding region (typically a school district or a county). ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In 1970, the Norfolk City Schools and several other Virginia communities were also subjected to busing schemes, also returning to more or less neighborhood school plans some years later. Norfolk is a city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States of America. ...

See also

• the "Southern Manifesto," a document written in 1956 by legislators in the United States Congress opposed to racial integration in public places

The Southern Manifesto was a document written in 1956 by legislators in the United States Congress opposed to racial integration in public places. ... 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Congress of the United States is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States of America. ...

External links

• "The Ground Beneath Our Feet" website
• and timeline
• VA Historical Society
• History of busing in Richmond
• Library of Virginia
• "Separate but Not Equal: Race, Education, and Prince Edward County, Virginia - a selected bibliography
• "They Closed Our Schools," the story of Massive Resistance and the closing of the Prince Edward County, Virginia public schools