Abstract
On January 29, 1970, Judge Ben Krentzman ordered the school board of Manatee County, Florida, to desegregate through the use of busing. This ruling seems innocuous enough in hindsight, certainly a common event in that era. At the time, however, the case of Harvest v. Board of Public Instruction prompted a clash between the determined district judge from the Middle District of Florida and the firebrand, reelection-seeking Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr.-a controversy that made national news. And though these juicy facts have long since faded into the past, the ramifications of the Harvest decision are still being felt today. This Comment will describe the legal and sociopolitical history giving rise to this litigation, unpack the Harvest decision itself, and finally examine the lasting legal and practical relevance of the case.
Recommended Citation
Millcarek, Lauren
(2013)
"History in More Than Black and White: The Story of One District Judge Who Faced Down a Fiery Desegregation Controversy and Created a Lasting Legacy,"
Florida Historical Quarterly: Vol. 92:
No.
2, Article 9.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/fhq/vol92/iss2/9
