In the 1955 case of Lucy et al. v. Adams, Dean of Admissions, University of Alabama, Autherine J. Lucy and Pollie Anne Myers were denied admission to the University of Alabama due to their race despite meeting all other qualifications for entry into the graduate program. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Lucy and Myers based on its previous ruling in Brown v Board Of Education that racial segregation was unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of Fourteenth Amendment. This decision forced the university to admit both women as students making Autherine J.Lucy become first African-American student at University Of Alabama.

In the case of Lucy et al. v. Adams, Dean of Admissions, University of Alabama (1955), there was no recorded dissenting opinion from any Supreme Court Justice. The court ruled unanimously in favor of Autherine Lucy and Pollie Myers Hudson, ordering the University to admit them as students on grounds that their rejection due to race violated the Equal Protection Clause under Fourteenth Amendment rights. This decision marked a significant step towards desegregation in education within America's legal system.