Like other cities across the South, Montgomery, Ala. took the extraordinary step of closing swimming pools, parks, and recreational facilities rather than integrate them as court ordered in 1958. Later, those pools were filled with dirt.

The Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) filled the city's recreational needs, but continued to segregate children, going so far as to ban kids who swam at an integrated pool from city-wide meets.

Then, in 1969, the YMCA refused to admit two African American children to its summer camp.

Southern Poverty Law Center co-founder Morris Dees filed a class action suit, Smith v. YMCA, to stop the YMCA's policy of racial discrimination.

He uncovered a secret 1958 agreement in which Montgomery officials gave the YMCA control of many city recreational activities. The court ruled the city had invested the YMCA with a "municipal character," and ordered the YMCA to stop discriminatory practices.

Joe Levin joined forces with Dees in 1972, creating the Southern Poverty Law Center. Many early cases helped change the face of the South, including Nixon v. Brewer, which resulted in the election of 17 black Alabama legislators.