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The Southern Manifesto was a document issued in response to the Supreme Court's 1954 ruling ''[[Brown v. Board of Education]]'', which integrated public schools.  School segregation laws were some of the most enduring and best-known of the [[Jim Crow]] laws that characterized the American South at the time.  All but twenty-eight of the 138 southern Democrat members of Congress signed this Southern Manifesto, including 19 of the Majority Democrat Senators.<ref>https://d1lexza0zk46za.cloudfront.net/history/am-docs/southern-manifesto.pdf</ref>  [[John Sparkman]], 1952 Vice Presidential candidate as part of the Democrat's Southern Strategy, [[J. William Fulbright]]  mentor of Bill Clinton, Richard Brevard Russell of the [[Warren Commission]], [[Sam Ervin]] of the [[Watergate]] Committee, [[Hale Boggs]] (the father of [[NPR]]'s Cokie Roberts), and Wilbur Mills were all signatories. It reads in part: {{quotebox|"This unwarranted exercise of power by the Court, contrary to the Constitution, is creating chaos and confusion in the States principally affected. It is destroying the amicable relations between the white and Negro races that have been created through 90 years of patient effort by the good people of both races. It has planted hatred and suspicion where there has been heretofore friendship and understanding....We commend the motives of those States which have declared the intention to resist forced integration by any lawful means."}} [[File:Little Rock Nine.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Republican President Dwight Eisenhower called out the 101st Airborne to protect Black school children from Democrat protesters after a Democrat governor refused to implement a desegregation order written by the Republican Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.]]

The Southern Manifesto was a document issued in response to the Supreme Court's 1954 ruling ''[[Brown v. Board of Education]]'', which integrated public schools.  School segregation laws were some of the most enduring and best-known of the [[Jim Crow]] laws that characterized the American South at the time.  All but twenty-eight of the 138 southern Democrat members of Congress signed this Southern Manifesto, including 19 of the Majority Democrat Senators.<ref>https://d1lexza0zk46za.cloudfront.net/history/am-docs/southern-manifesto.pdf</ref>  [[John Sparkman]], 1952 Vice Presidential candidate as part of the Democrat's Southern Strategy, [[J. William Fulbright]]  mentor of Bill Clinton, Richard Brevard Russell of the [[Warren Commission]], [[Sam Ervin]] of the [[Watergate]] Committee, [[Hale Boggs]] (the father of [[NPR]]'s Cokie Roberts), and Wilbur Mills were all signatories. It reads in part: {{quotebox|"This unwarranted exercise of power by the Court, contrary to the Constitution, is creating chaos and confusion in the States principally affected. It is destroying the amicable relations between the white and Negro races that have been created through 90 years of patient effort by the good people of both races. It has planted hatred and suspicion where there has been heretofore friendship and understanding....We commend the motives of those States which have declared the intention to resist forced integration by any lawful means."}} [[File:Little Rock Nine.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Republican President Dwight Eisenhower called out the 101st Airborne to protect Black school children from Democrat protesters after a Democrat governor refused to implement a desegregation order written by the Republican Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.]]

The Southern Manifesto was signed on a large mahogany conference table in Sen. John Stennis' office which Stennis used as his desk and referred to as "the flagship of the [[Confederacy]]." The table was used by segregationist and co-signer of the Southern Manifesto before, Sen. [[Richard Russell]] before his retirement.  When Stennis retired in 1988, Sen. [[Joseph Biden]] took over Stennis' office, including the conference table.  When Sen. Biden was elected Vice President in 2008, Biden had the flagship of the Confederacy moved into the Vice President's residence.

The Southern Manifesto was signed on a large mahogany conference table in Sen. John Stennis' office which Stennis used as his desk and referred to as "the flagship of the [[Confederacy]]." The table was used by segregationist and co-signer of the Southern Manifesto Sen. [[Richard Russell]] before his retirement.  When Stennis retired in 1988, Sen. [[Joseph Biden]] took over Stennis' office, including the conference table.  When Sen. Biden was elected Vice President in 2008, Biden had the flagship of the Confederacy moved into the Vice President's residence.

One of the first challenges to ''Brown v. Board of Education'' occurred when Democrat Governor [[Orval E. Faubus]] ordered the Arkansas National Guard to prevent African-American students from enrolling at [[Little Rock]] Central High School. Central High was an all-white school. Faubus  ordered the troops to "accomplish the mission of maintaining or restoring law and order and to preserve the peace, health, safety and security of the citizens." A force of 289 soldiers was assembled. The commander told nine black students, six girls and thee boys ages 15–17 years old who were attempting to enter the school, to return home. The standoff continued for three weeks. Little Rock Democrat mayor Woodrow Wilson Mann appealed to President Eisenhower to help end the deadlock. Eisenhower sent the [[101st Airborne Division]] to federalized the entire 10,000-member Arkansas National Guard. The students were allowed to enroll.  

One of the first challenges to ''Brown v. Board of Education'' occurred when Democrat Governor [[Orval E. Faubus]] ordered the Arkansas National Guard to prevent African-American students from enrolling at [[Little Rock]] Central High School. Central High was an all-white school. Faubus  ordered the troops to "accomplish the mission of maintaining or restoring law and order and to preserve the peace, health, safety and security of the citizens." A force of 289 soldiers was assembled. The commander told nine black students, six girls and thee boys ages 15–17 years old who were attempting to enter the school, to return home. The standoff continued for three weeks. Little Rock Democrat mayor Woodrow Wilson Mann appealed to President Eisenhower to help end the deadlock. Eisenhower sent the [[101st Airborne Division]] to federalized the entire 10,000-member Arkansas National Guard. The students were allowed to enroll.