In the case, McLaurin was supported by Thurgood Marshall, Amos T. Hall, Roscoe Dunjee, and five other African American students.
At first, he was forced to sit with his desk and chair outside the classroom in the hallway next to the door so he could listen to the lectures while maintaining separation from the white students.
The District Court was not in agreement with his argument and denied his motion for the reason that racial segregation is a "deeply rooted social policy of the State of Oklahoma.
Writing for the Court, Chief Justice Frederick M. Vinson wrote that McLaurin was "handicapped in his pursuit of effective graduate instruction.
Such restrictions impair and inhibit his ability to study, to engage in discussion and exchange views with other students, and in general to learn his professions."
[4][5][6][7] A campus lounge with a memorial display in the university community center is named in honor of McLaurin and Sylvia A. Lewis, another student who challenged segregation at OU.