With the rise of the Cold War, federal officials in the United States sought to end the racial segregation that the U.S. Supreme Court had accepted in the 1896 decision of "Plessy v. Ferguson." Although the reforms began with changes in the armed services, they moved to reduce racial segregation in schools. Many forces brought about the initial reduction of segregation. For example, integration increased along with increased urbanization, improved education for white and black people, and advances in media coverage. Although these conditions reinforced each other, this article emphasizes the ways various officials called on Cold War fears to advance the racial integration of school. At the same time, the essay shows how conservatives used those same arguments to resist integration as well. Many authorities considered the racial desegregation of schools as a means to accomplish other goals they thought were more important. Accordingly, the drive for the racial desegregation of schools ended when the external reasons seemed to disappear. This was a serious problem because it implied that people did not seem to think that the racial desegregation of schools was a movement toward a more democratic society.