In 1954, the United States Supreme Court handed down its landmark decision in Brown versus Board of Education….and stated that public schools must desegregate, quote, “with all deliberate speed.” The problem with the ruling was it did not address how the process should work or when it should start.
Most Southern states were reluctant to change, coming up with creative ways to desegregate the schools without fully integrating them. Many private schools opened at this time.
Strange ideas were suggested, including the Black students could attend on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while White students come Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Or, Black students could come in the morning and white kids come in the afternoon.
It would take three years before Nashville saw an African American student walk onto a White public school campus.