March 8, 1962

Twenty-two members of the Council on Community Affairs (COCA) filed a collective suit in the U.S. District Court against the city board of directors for the desegregation of “public parks, recreational facilities, Joseph T. Robinson Auditorium and all other public facilities” in Little Rock (Pulaski County). Members of the city board of directors admitted that the desegregation of public facilities was “a foregone conclusion” should the case go to court. Nevertheless, there was an absolute commitment to fight the lawsuit, if only to buy time to devise other methods that could avoid desegregation.