 The governor nevertheless decided to file an amicus brief, and Lake presented the state's case in defense of segregation before the Supreme Court during hearings over "Brown II".After the Supreme Court handed down its decision insisting on the dismantling of the state's segregated school system, Lake attacked the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in a speech in Asheboro, accusing it of agitating the state's African-American population.Lake's speech established him as a leader of the state's segregationists, some of whom suggested that he should run for governor.