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Brown v. Board of Education

4 min readโ€ขdecember 9, 2021

Jessica Q.

Jessica Q.

Jessica Q.

Jessica Q.

Racial Segregation in Public Schools Violated the Fourteenth Amendment

Welcome to a guide to Brown v. Board of Education, a landmark court case that set a precedent for the Supreme Court ๐Ÿ’ผ and United States history ๐ŸŒŽ itself. In this 1954 case, the Supreme Court judges ruled unanimously that racial segregation in schools ๐Ÿซ is unconstitutional. Letโ€™s jump into examining ๐Ÿ”Ž this case further, from events preceding it to the actual ruling, and how it continues to affect the United States today.

https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/fiveable-92889.appspot.com/o/images%2F-3jrYf13WhUD1.jpg?alt=media&token=099d7ceb-c40e-4fe3-a16a-d62057e957fa

Image Courtesy of Wikipedia

How the Case Came to Be

Another landmark case was the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ruling. SCOTUS ruled that racial segregation in public facilities was allowed โœ…, as long as they were โ€œequal.โ€ This laid down the โ€œseparate but equalโ€ doctrine โš–๏ธ that governed society for the next few decades. Jim Crow laws were developed, which prevented ๐Ÿ™…โ€โ™€๏ธ African-Americans from sharing facilities with whites. However, there were many โ€œloopholesโ€ to what โ€œequalโ€ meant, and rarely were the facilities ever actually equal.

Nonetheless, several prominent figures continued to challenge these laws. In 1951, Oliver Brown filed suit ๐Ÿ“‹ against the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. Linda Brown, his daughter, had been denied an education at all-white elementary schools. Brown believed that African-American schools were not equal โŒ to their white counterparts, and that the segregation between the two races violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment (mandates that individuals in similar situations must be treated equally by the law). ๐Ÿ“œ

With the past precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson decades ๐Ÿ• before, federal district courts continued to uphold that verdict. However, Brownโ€™s case, as well as four other similar cases, were combined under Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka as it went ๐Ÿš— to the Supreme Court.

How the Case Unfolded

Chief Justice Earl Warren led ๐Ÿš€ the case, while Thurgood Marshall, who would later be appointed the first black justice of the Supreme Court, was chief attorney ๐Ÿ”จ for the plaintiffs (who included Brown, as well as the other African-American families).

The judges came to a unanimous decision in 1954. They decided that racial segregation in public schools DID, in fact, violate ๐Ÿ’ก the Equal Protection Clause. The Court believed that the clause guaranteed equal education ๐Ÿ“š. According to Thirteen.org, the Supreme Court claimed that โ€œpublic education in the 20th century...had become an essential component of a citizen's public life, forming the basis of democratic citizenship, normal socialization, and professional training.โ€ Therefore, it must be offered ๐Ÿคฒ equally to both whites and blacks.

How the Case Affects Society Todayย 

Brown v. Board of Education is considered one of the greatest ๐Ÿ’ช landmark cases of the 20th century and added fuel to the flame ๐Ÿ”ฅ of the civil rights movement. It was a huge step ๐Ÿ‘  forward towards racial equality.

The Court did not speak about how schools should be racially integrated ๐Ÿคท, and the verdict did not completely desegregate public schools in the United States. Some states did follow โœŠ the decision and began integrating their schools, but many, especially in the South, openly defied it. ๐Ÿ˜ก An example of this was Little Rock Nine: In 1957, the governor of Arkansas used the stateโ€™sย  National Guard to prevent Black students from attending a white high school.

In 1955, the Supreme Court argued ๐Ÿ“ข Brown v. Board II. In this case, they aimed to analyze ๐Ÿค” what actions should be taken in order to implement the verdict of the first case. They decided that the decision should be implemented โ€œwith all deliberate speed,โ€ and demanded that local school authorities should follow the verdict with full compliance. ๐Ÿคย 

Despite its setbacks, Brown v. Board ultimately had a significant impact on the civil rights movement. ๐Ÿ™Œ It contributed to events like the Montgomery Bus Boycott ๐Ÿš and demonstrations led by Martin Luther King, Jr. Most importantly, it overturned the โ€œseparate but equalโ€ precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson. Eventually, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 โค๏ธ was passed, prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/fiveable-92889.appspot.com/o/images%2F-FlDXjX4c25zT.jpg?alt=media&token=e5388b84-e862-4608-a28f-1cf3954302fe

Image Courtesy of Wikipedia

Though this case sent waves of impact through the United States, decades later, our country is still arguing ๐Ÿ‘ฃ over the best way to solve racial inequalities in school systems. Large factors in these inequalities include living areas and wealth. ๐Ÿ’ธ

Note: Thirteen.org was used as a source for this guide.

Brown v. Board of Education

4 min readโ€ขdecember 9, 2021

Jessica Q.

Jessica Q.

Jessica Q.

Jessica Q.

Racial Segregation in Public Schools Violated the Fourteenth Amendment

Welcome to a guide to Brown v. Board of Education, a landmark court case that set a precedent for the Supreme Court ๐Ÿ’ผ and United States history ๐ŸŒŽ itself. In this 1954 case, the Supreme Court judges ruled unanimously that racial segregation in schools ๐Ÿซ is unconstitutional. Letโ€™s jump into examining ๐Ÿ”Ž this case further, from events preceding it to the actual ruling, and how it continues to affect the United States today.

https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/fiveable-92889.appspot.com/o/images%2F-3jrYf13WhUD1.jpg?alt=media&token=099d7ceb-c40e-4fe3-a16a-d62057e957fa

Image Courtesy of Wikipedia

How the Case Came to Be

Another landmark case was the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ruling. SCOTUS ruled that racial segregation in public facilities was allowed โœ…, as long as they were โ€œequal.โ€ This laid down the โ€œseparate but equalโ€ doctrine โš–๏ธ that governed society for the next few decades. Jim Crow laws were developed, which prevented ๐Ÿ™…โ€โ™€๏ธ African-Americans from sharing facilities with whites. However, there were many โ€œloopholesโ€ to what โ€œequalโ€ meant, and rarely were the facilities ever actually equal.

Nonetheless, several prominent figures continued to challenge these laws. In 1951, Oliver Brown filed suit ๐Ÿ“‹ against the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. Linda Brown, his daughter, had been denied an education at all-white elementary schools. Brown believed that African-American schools were not equal โŒ to their white counterparts, and that the segregation between the two races violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment (mandates that individuals in similar situations must be treated equally by the law). ๐Ÿ“œ

With the past precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson decades ๐Ÿ• before, federal district courts continued to uphold that verdict. However, Brownโ€™s case, as well as four other similar cases, were combined under Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka as it went ๐Ÿš— to the Supreme Court.

How the Case Unfolded

Chief Justice Earl Warren led ๐Ÿš€ the case, while Thurgood Marshall, who would later be appointed the first black justice of the Supreme Court, was chief attorney ๐Ÿ”จ for the plaintiffs (who included Brown, as well as the other African-American families).

The judges came to a unanimous decision in 1954. They decided that racial segregation in public schools DID, in fact, violate ๐Ÿ’ก the Equal Protection Clause. The Court believed that the clause guaranteed equal education ๐Ÿ“š. According to Thirteen.org, the Supreme Court claimed that โ€œpublic education in the 20th century...had become an essential component of a citizen's public life, forming the basis of democratic citizenship, normal socialization, and professional training.โ€ Therefore, it must be offered ๐Ÿคฒ equally to both whites and blacks.

How the Case Affects Society Todayย 

Brown v. Board of Education is considered one of the greatest ๐Ÿ’ช landmark cases of the 20th century and added fuel to the flame ๐Ÿ”ฅ of the civil rights movement. It was a huge step ๐Ÿ‘  forward towards racial equality.

The Court did not speak about how schools should be racially integrated ๐Ÿคท, and the verdict did not completely desegregate public schools in the United States. Some states did follow โœŠ the decision and began integrating their schools, but many, especially in the South, openly defied it. ๐Ÿ˜ก An example of this was Little Rock Nine: In 1957, the governor of Arkansas used the stateโ€™sย  National Guard to prevent Black students from attending a white high school.

In 1955, the Supreme Court argued ๐Ÿ“ข Brown v. Board II. In this case, they aimed to analyze ๐Ÿค” what actions should be taken in order to implement the verdict of the first case. They decided that the decision should be implemented โ€œwith all deliberate speed,โ€ and demanded that local school authorities should follow the verdict with full compliance. ๐Ÿคย 

Despite its setbacks, Brown v. Board ultimately had a significant impact on the civil rights movement. ๐Ÿ™Œ It contributed to events like the Montgomery Bus Boycott ๐Ÿš and demonstrations led by Martin Luther King, Jr. Most importantly, it overturned the โ€œseparate but equalโ€ precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson. Eventually, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 โค๏ธ was passed, prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

https://firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0/b/fiveable-92889.appspot.com/o/images%2F-FlDXjX4c25zT.jpg?alt=media&token=e5388b84-e862-4608-a28f-1cf3954302fe

Image Courtesy of Wikipedia

Though this case sent waves of impact through the United States, decades later, our country is still arguing ๐Ÿ‘ฃ over the best way to solve racial inequalities in school systems. Large factors in these inequalities include living areas and wealth. ๐Ÿ’ธ

Note: Thirteen.org was used as a source for this guide.



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ยฉ 2024 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.

APยฎ and SATยฎ are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse this website.