
Harley Herman
"What makes this case significant both from Florida history and the national perspective is that Florida became the first state to engage in massive resistance against federal orders and federal mandates and it became part of a pattern across the South that really did not see its end until George Wallace was removed from the steps of the University of Alabama. But Florida started it first in what essentially became a Fort Sumter of a second Civil War in this country and it was part of a coordinated effort which is important to understand when we look at this Court and what had happened during that history.", excerpt from Harley Herman's May 25, 1999 presentation at the Florida Supreme Court's ceremonial session honoring the fiftieth anniversary of the lawsuit brought by Virgil Hawkins. This Florida Supreme Court ceremonial session is most likely the "1999 formal apology" that FSU President John Thrasher and his advisory panel are referring to in their decision to rename B.K. Roberts Hall.