He served four terms as governor of Alabama, and also ran for President of the United States several times, during the 1960s and 1970s. Wallace was a longtime supporter of segregation; a policy that did not allow African-Americans to attend the same schools, or go to many of the same public places, as white people. In 1963 he stood in a schoolhouse door to prevent black students from attending the school (which would have integrated the school). In a speech, he said he would support "segregation today, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever". He was a controversial figure. Some people saw him as a man who spoke up for the poor and was an outspoken populist. Others viewed him as a terrible person, a white supremacist who encouraged violence.