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The Brown vs. Board of Education decision was a landmark moment in American history, but what exactly caused it? This blog post looks at the factors that led to this pivotal moment in the fight for civil rights.
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Introduction
The Brown v. Board of Education decision was a turning point in American history, one that led to the end of legal segregation in America’s public schools. The case began when a young girl named Linda Brown had to walk thirty minutes to school every day, while a white school was only seven blocks away from her home. Linda’s father attempted to enroll her in the white school, but was denied due to the color of her skin. Mr. Brown then teamed up with the NAACP to file a class action lawsuit against the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas on behalf of Linda and other African American children who were forced to attend segregated schools.
The case made its way all the way to the Supreme Court, which issued its landmark ruling on May 17th, 1954. In a unanimous decision, the Court ruled that separate but equal schools were unconstitutional, and ordered desegregation “with all deliberate speed.” This ruling paved the way for other important civil rights decisions, and helped make America a more equal country for all its citizens.
The Plessy v. Ferguson Case
The Plessy v. Ferguson case of 1896 established the “separate but equal” doctrine, which held that separate public facilities for blacks and whites were constitutional as long as the facilities were equal. This case arose out of a Louisiana law that required railroads to provide “equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races.” A black man named Homer Plessy bought a first-class ticket on a train but was then seated in the car reserved for blacks. Plessy refused to move, citing the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery. He was arrested and convicted of violating the Louisiana law, and he appealed his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In a 7-1 decision, the Court ruled that “separate but equal” accommodations were constitutional. The Court reasoned that segregation did not violate blacks’ rights under the Fourteenth Amendment because segregation did not involve any denial of equal protection of the laws. The lone dissenter in Plessy was Justice John Harlan, who argued that segregation violated blacks’ rights to enjoy the privileges and immunities of citizenship and to receive equal protection of the laws.
The Brown v. Board of Education Case
The Brown v. Board of Education case originated the in the state of Kansas in 1951. The case began when a young African American girl named Linda Brown had to walk one mile through a railroad switchyard to get to her all-black elementary school, even though a white elementary school was only seven blocks away from her home. Linda’s father, Oliver Brown, attempted to enroll her in the white elementary school, but was denied admission because of the color of Linda’s skin. Mr. Brown then contacted the NAACP who helped him file a lawsuit against the Topeka Board of Education on behalf of his daughter and other African American children in Topeka who were subjected to racially segregated schools.
The lawsuit eventually made its way to the United States Supreme Court where, on May 17th, 1954, the Court issued its unanimous decision declaring that “separate but equal” educational facilities were unconstitutional and ordered desegregation of public schools across America.
The Significance of the Brown Decision
The Brown decision was significant because it overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896. Plessy v. Ferguson had established the “separate but equal” doctrine, which allowed for segregation of public facilities on the basis of race. Brown v. Board of Education ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, as it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This ruling led to the desegregation of public schools across America.
The Impact of the Brown Decision
On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. Holding that segregated public schools were unconstitutional, the Court overturning the “separate but equal” doctrine announced in its 1896 decision in Plessy v. Ferguson.In the years following the Brown decision, activists working for civil rights used a variety of strategies to implement the Court’s ruling. Although Jim Crow laws mandating racial segregation had been invalidated by the Supreme Court’s decision, in practice segregation continued unabated in many parts of the United States. In some cases, such as in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Birmingham, Alabama, Southern states used violence and intimidation to prevent African American children from attending newly integrated schools.
It was not until 1969 that a full-scale effort to desegregate public schools began in earnest. That year, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the city of Mobile, Alabama, claiming that its public schools were racially segregated in violation of the Constitution. A federal district court agreed and ordered Mobile to desegregate its schools immediately. In response to this ruling and others like it around the country, many school districts began busing students to different schools in order to achieve racial balance. Busing became a lightning rod for controversy, with many white parents accusing advocates of using excessive force in their attempts to racially integrate America’s schools.
