1970s
During the 1970s Charlotte was a community stuck in a whirlwind of racial issues. The city was experiencing rapid growth and was looking at the dreaded busing of students. The decade started with the 1970 Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education case concerning trying to promote school integration through busing.
Parents by the thousands were enraged about the busing and Judge McMillan’s ruling that busing was the best solution to the integrating of the school system. Parents protested in front of Judge McMillan’s home. Eventually the case would be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court which voted unanimously to uphold Judge McMillan's decision in the Swann case. Things continued to remain tense with fights and altercations at the schools. In time things calm down and people accept the integration.
The city was host to President Richard Nixon when he visited to help honor Charlotte native Reverend Billy Graham. The event was overshadowed by Nixon’s Secret Service detail who would not allow long haired men to enter the event. They feared they were there to protest the country’s military involvement in Vietnam.