Desegregating
Public Spaces and Schools

While Dr. Montgomery's clinic flourished, there were still social and civic barriers to be torn down. Black citizens could not eat in any café, visit the local theater, or even use the laundry mat. Some farmers used their business connections to convince owners that there was no reason to deprive service to the Montgomerys. 

In 1954 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled racial segregation of schools unconstitutional, Dr. Montgomery pushed Poteau's school board to desegregate. On June 7, 1955, Poteau became the first school district in Oklahoma to integrate. Governor Raymond D. Gary had predicted that southeastern Oklahoma would lag years behind in integration, but the small town led the wave of change.

Why was it necessary to desegregate public schools and other public spaces?

Image 1: Citizens protest segregation at stores in downtown Oklahoma City. Photograph by Dick Cobb, August 22, 1960. Courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society.

Image 2: An integrated classroom. Photograph by Bob Albright, June 7, 1956. Courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society.