Segregation is the legal and social separation of people by race—through laws (de jure) like Jim Crow or through patterns (de facto) like housing and school separation that happen without explicit laws. It meant separate schools, waiting rooms, housing, and voting barriers that were supposed to be “separate but equal” (Plessy v. Ferguson) but were almost always unequal. The 1954 Brown v. Board decision (citing the Clark doll test) ruled school segregation unconstitutional. Slavery, by contrast, was chattel slavery: people were legally owned, forced to work without pay, denied bodily autonomy and family rights, and treated as property. Segregation limited rights and opportunities and enforced separation, but it did not legally make people someone’s property. Both were systems of racial oppression—slavery legally deprived people of freedom; segregation continued control through exclusion and inequality after emancipation. For more on Topic 4.4 and exam connections (LO 4.4.A–B), see the Fiveable study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Even after the Civil War, discrimination kept going because laws, violence, and social systems worked together to block Black freedom. Southern states passed Black Codes and later Jim Crow laws (de jure segregation) that limited voting, schooling, transportation, and housing despite the 13th–15th Amendments and the Civil Rights Act of 1875. White terror—lynching and mobs—plus legal decisions like Plessy v. Ferguson (the “separate but equal” doctrine) made segregation official and dangerous. Economic systems (sharecropping, labor liens), redlining, and “white flight” reinforced de facto segregation in schools and neighborhoods. These persistent barriers are exactly what LO 4.4.A describes: continued racial discrimination, violence, and segregation that helped spark the Civil Rights Movement. For extra review tied to the CED and exam, check the Topic 4.4 study guide on Fiveable (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

De jure segregation is segregation enforced by law or government policy—think state and local Jim Crow laws that required separate schools, buses, and public facilities. Brown v. Board (1954) targeted de jure school segregation because it was state-sanctioned and violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s equal protection clause. De facto segregation, by contrast, happens through private actions, social patterns, and economic forces rather than explicit laws—for example, residential segregation driven by redlining, restrictive covenants, and white flight; these kept many public schools and neighborhoods segregated even after Brown. On the AP exam, know that Brown overturned de jure “separate but equal,” but de facto segregation persisted (CED EK 4.4.C.1). For a short unit review see the Topic 4.4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Brown v. Board (1954) is the Supreme Court case that said “separate but equal” schools are unconstitutional. Before Brown, Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) allowed segregation if facilities were “equal.” Brown overturned that for public schools, ruling segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment because separation itself harmed Black children’s sense of self-worth. The Court cited the Clarks’ “doll test,” which showed segregation damaged children’s self-esteem. That decision (LO 4.4.B in the CED) began federal efforts to integrate schools, but many whites resisted—state “massive resistance,” school closings, white flight, and continued de facto segregation meant change was uneven. Brown also had unintended consequences (e.g., many Black teachers lost jobs). For AP review, focus on why the Court used the Fourteenth Amendment, the role of the doll test, and the difference between de jure and de facto segregation (see the Topic 4.4 study guide: https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6). Practice questions: (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

On paper Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) said segregation was legal so long as facilities were “equal.” In everyday life that rarely happened. Schools, hospitals, buses, and parks for Black people were systematically underfunded, older, and overcrowded while white facilities got new buildings and better resources. States used laws (de jure segregation) and violence to enforce separation; over time, housing policies like redlining and private choices produced de facto segregation in neighborhoods and schools. Courts and customs also let local officials cut funding for integrated schools or close them rather than integrate—after Brown v. Board (1954) the Court ruled segregation in public schools unconstitutional, citing harms like the Clark doll tests showing damage to Black children’s self-esteem. Consequences included fewer jobs for Black teachers and white flight to suburbs, which kept many schools segregated. For AP review, focus on de jure vs. de facto segregation, Brown’s reasoning (Fourteenth Amendment + Clark studies), and related terms (Jim Crow, redlining). See the Topic 4.4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

The "doll test" was a set of experiments by psychologists Mamie and Kenneth Clark in the 1940s where Black children were shown identical white and Black dolls and asked which was "nice" or "bad" and which doll looked like them. Many Black children preferred the white dolls and attributed positive traits to them, showing internalized racial bias and low self-esteem. The Supreme Court cited the Clarks' findings in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) because it offered social-science evidence that "separate" schools produced harmful psychological effects on Black children. That helped the Court rule that state-sanctioned segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and undermined the "separate but equal" doctrine from Plessy. For the AP exam, this is a key piece of EK 4.4.B.2—the Clarks’ study is explicitly named in Brown (see the Unit 4 study guide on Fiveable: https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6). For extra practice, try questions at (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Many white families left for suburbs after Brown v. Board because they resisted enforced integration and wanted to keep segregated schools and neighborhoods. The CED notes several responses: some states cut funding for integrated schools, others supported all-white schools, and many white families shifted their investment into suburbs and private schools so their kids would attend schools with few Black students (this is often called “white flight”)—a form of de facto segregation reinforced by practices like redlining. Local officials also practiced Massive Resistance (closing or delaying schools) and sometimes used police to block integration. These moves kept school segregation alive even after the Supreme Court said “separate but equal” was unconstitutional (EK 4.4.C.1). For more on this topic, check the Topic 4.4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

In 1957 nine Black students (the “Little Rock Nine”) tried to integrate Little Rock Central High School after Brown v. Board (1954). Arkansas governor Orval Faubus used the National Guard to block them; after mob threats President Eisenhower federalized the Arkansas National Guard and sent the 101st Airborne to escort the students into school. Their year was marked by harassment, absences, and some schools shutting down rather than integrating—classic “Massive Resistance.” You need to know them because their case shows how Brown’s ruling (EK 4.4.B.1) sparked fierce local resistance and forced federal enforcement of the Fourteenth Amendment—key to LO 4.4.C. It illustrates de jure vs. de facto segregation, the limits of court decisions without enforcement, and how student activism catalyzed the broader Civil Rights Movement. For a focused review, see the Topic 4.4 study guide on Fiveable (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6). For practice, try the AP problems on Fiveable (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Start with a clear thesis that answers the prompt and sets a line of reasoning (place it in your intro or conclusion). Briefly give context: mid-20th-century Jim Crow segregation, de jure/de facto segregation, and the push to enforce Reconstruction Amendments (mention Brown v. Board and the Clark doll test). Use at least three of the provided documents: summarize each, cite specific evidence, and explain how that evidence supports your thesis. Connect sources to broader developments (e.g., Brown’s overturning of Plessy, Massive Resistance, Little Rock Nine, white flight, loss of Black teachers). Add one piece of outside evidence (e.g., Civil Rights Act of 1875’s relevance or redlining as ongoing segregation). For source use, explain perspective/purpose/context for at least two documents. End with reasoning that ties cause/effect or continuity/change. Practice this format with unit 4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6), review the unit overview (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4), and try practice problems (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Brown v. Board (1954) had big, lasting effects but didn’t instantly fix schooling. Legally, it overturned Plessy’s “separate but equal” and set a constitutional precedent that state-sanctioned school segregation violated the Fourteenth Amendment—this is a required CED source you should know. The decision energized the Civil Rights Movement (e.g., Little Rock 1957) and justified later federal enforcement and civil-rights laws. But de jure victories didn’t erase de facto segregation: white flight to suburbs and private schools, redlining, uneven funding, and deliberate local resistance kept many schools segregated. Consequences also included the loss of many Black teachers in the South when districts consolidated. For AP exam prep, link Brown to the Clark doll test and Massive Resistance in your DBQ or short answers (see the Topic 4.4 study guide on Fiveable: https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6). For extra practice, use Fiveable practice problems (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

After Brown v. Board (1954) many white leaders chose “Massive Resistance” rather than comply. Some local and state governments cut funding for integrated schools, supported private “segregation academies,” or legally closed public schools to prevent Black students from attending. Closing schools let white communities keep racial separation and avoid court-ordered integration, even though it harmed students’ education. A famous case: Prince Edward County (VA) shut public schools for five years rather than integrate. These tactics reinforced de jure and de facto segregation, displaced Black teachers, and pushed white families into private or suburban schools (white flight). For AP review, link this to LO 4.4.C and EK 4.4.C.1 about varied responses to Brown. For more context and exam practice, see the Topic 4.4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Brown (1954) declared school segregation unconstitutional, but it didn’t instantly end segregation because the ruling removed legal justification (de jure segregation) but didn’t automatically force local compliance or fix broader social and economic patterns (de facto segregation). Many Southern states responded with “Massive Resistance”: cutting funding for integrated schools, creating vouchers/private “segregation academies,” using police or closing schools rather than integrate, and firing Black teachers. White flight to suburbs and private schools, plus housing policies like redlining, kept neighborhoods—and therefore schools—segregated. Enforcement required additional court orders, federal action, and local change (think Little Rock, 1957, where federal troops enforced integration). For the AP exam, focus on LO 4.4.B–C and EKs about de jure vs. de facto segregation, Massive Resistance, white flight, and the Clark doll test’s role in Brown (study guide: https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6). Practice related questions at (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

The Reconstruction Amendments (13th, 14th, 15th) created the constitutional promises—no slavery, citizenship with equal protection, and voting rights—that Civil Rights activists and lawyers relied on in the 1950s–60s. That promise mattered because Jim Crow laws, Plessy v. Ferguson’s “separate but equal,” and violence denied those rights in practice. The mid-20th century movement used the Amendments as legal and moral leverage: NAACP lawyers argued that segregation violated the Fourteenth Amendment (Brown v. Board, 1954 overturned Plessy), activists demanded federal enforcement of voting rights, and later legislation (e.g., Voting Rights Act) built on those Amendments. So the Amendments provided the legal foundation and language (citizenship, equal protection, voting) that the Brown decision and the broader movement invoked to press for real change. For the AP CED, Brown v. Board is a required source and Topic 4.4 ties directly to the Reconstruction Amendments—see the Topic 4.4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6). Practice more with Fiveable practice problems (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Short answer: Both regions faced racism, but the way it was enforced differed. In the South, segregation was often de jure—written into law through Jim Crow—so Black people were legally barred from equal schools, public accommodations, and voting (disenfranchisement, poll taxes, literacy tests) and faced routine racial violence. In the North, segregation was more often de facto: not codified by state law but produced by practices like redlining, discriminatory real estate and lending, employment bias, and “white flight.” That meant Northern Black communities faced segregated neighborhoods and schools, limited job access, and exclusion from many public and private institutions even without explicit Jim Crow statutes. Both regions shared discrimination in education, housing, transportation, and voting, but the South’s was more legally enforced while the North’s relied on economic, social, and institutional practices (see LO 4.4.A). For more on Topic 4.4, check the Fiveable study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).

Brown (1954) legally ended "separate but equal," but it didn’t automatically protect Black teachers. In many Southern districts integration meant white school boards closed Black schools, consolidated them, or reassigned staff—and Black teachers were often fired or demoted while white teachers kept or took their jobs, even with less experience. Local “massive resistance” policies, funding cuts for integrated schools, white flight to suburbs/private schools, and racist hiring decisions all played a role (see EK 4.4.C.1–C.2 and the CED note that many Black teachers lost jobs). This shows how de jure change at the Supreme Court level didn’t erase de facto segregation or local discrimination. If you want to dig deeper for AP review, check the Topic 4.4 study guide (https://library.fiveable.me/ap-african-american-studies/unit-4/4-discrimination-segregation-and-the-civil-rights-movement/study-guide/mzUdWDkWbWHxl2c6) and practice questions (https://library.fiveable.me/practice/ap-african-american-studies).