Many southern states tried to block school desegregation by:

Southern states used several different strategies to stop school desegregation. One of the most famous ones was used by the Governor of Arkansas, who used the National Guard to block the Little Rock Nine from entering Central High School. The Little Rock Nine consisted of nine African-American students who would be the first African-American students in a previously all white school.

Another tactic used were school shutdowns. This was popular in the state of Virginia after the Brown vs. Board case which officially ended school segregation. This plan to not open schools or school districts is known as the Massive Resistance plan.