Rather than accede to this demand the city closed down all of its parks, including the Montgomery Zoo, effective on January 1, 1959.

[4] In response to this, Martin Luther King Jr. on behalf of the MIA, announced that the Association would attempt to end racial segregation in Montgomery public schools by having large numbers of black children apply for admission to white schools in order to provide test cases which might allow a judge to declare the Alabama Pupil Placement Act unconstitutional.

[5] The first major lawsuit affecting Montgomery schools was Lee v. Macon County Board of Education in 1963.

[7] Later, federal moves against segregation academies in Alabama switched from the courts to the IRS, addressing their non-profit status.

[10] He enjoined the city from continuing this practice,[8] stating that "In allowing private academies to use city facilities, Montgomery is providing aid to private, segregated schools, thus facilitating their establishment and operation as an alternative for white students who in most instances are seeking to avoid desegregated public schools.