Brown v. Board.

As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, the case that ended the legal segregation of our public schools in the United States, we should remember some historic events that occurred in Florida after that decision. Desegregation did not come swiftly in Florida after that important opinion.

Unfortunately, for four years following the ruling, the Florida Supreme Court and the university system did everything possible to avoid enforcing that decision. Many were determined to keep at least our public universities segregated. As late as 1957, the Florida Supreme Court, by a 5-2 decision, ruled that it would not order the University of Florida Law School to admit a qualified black man, Virgil Hawkins, even though the U.S. Supreme Court had ordered it to do so. Virgil Hawkins had tried for eight years to be admitted and our Florida courts and university system kept him out.

The majority of the court believed that "Negroes" would be harassed, whites would leave the school, and violence would Occur if Hawkins was admitted. Formerly, it was not a unanimous decision. Two brave justices. Justice E. Harris Drew and Elwyn Thomas, dissented and stated it was wrong to deny Hawkins admission because of his skin color. Justice Drew wrote, "It is a fundamental truth that justice delayed is justice denied."

The law school building at Florida State is named after one of the justices who wrote the opinion keeping Virgil Hawkins out of law school...