The City of New Orleans v. Barthe et al., 1963, is a U.S Supreme Court case that revolved around the issue of racial discrimination in public recreational facilities. The city had closed down its public swimming pools rather than desegregate them following a court order to end segregation in these facilities. A group of African American residents sued the city for this action, arguing it was racially discriminatory and violated their constitutional rights under the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, stating that closing down all public swimming pools instead of integrating them constituted unlawful racial discrimination. The decision emphasized that government entities could not evade federal anti-discrimination laws by simply eliminating services or resources altogether if they were required to provide those services without regard to race.

In the dissenting opinion for the case CITY OF NEW ORLEANS et al. v. BARTHE et al., Justice Harlan argued that the majority's decision to invalidate a New Orleans ordinance was incorrect as it failed to properly consider local conditions and circumstances, which should be given deference in matters of public health and safety regulations. He contended that there was no constitutional issue at stake, but rather a question of policy best left to local authorities who are more familiar with their community’s needs and challenges. The justice believed that this ruling interfered with state rights by overstepping federal authority into areas traditionally controlled by states or municipalities, such as zoning laws or business regulation. Furthermore, he expressed concern about potential implications on other similar ordinances across different cities if they were all subjected to strict scrutiny under equal protection clause analysis without due consideration for unique local factors.