The prosecution and defense of Brown v. The Board of Education is known for their perspectives on how schools for Black children were not equal to the white schools, and that segregation violated the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. The Brown v. The Board of Education case was a Supreme Court case stating that laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students were unconstitutional. This case was one of the cornerstones of the civil rights movement, and helped establish the precedent that “separate but equal” education and other services were not in fact equal.
The Prosecution, Brown and his attorneys claimed that segregation in any school was harmful. Stating that the segregation in schools based on race would result in lowered self esteem, uneducated individuals, and would make African-Americans socially and mentally inferior to other races. Warren believes that “Segregation with the sanction of law, therefore, has a tendency to [retard] the educational and mental development of negro children and to deprive
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Kluger writes that “Plessy v. Ferguson, which had upheld the concept and practice of state-endorsed racial discrimination-Jim Crow- the chimera of separate but equal public accommodations and institutions for blacks and whites.” (Kluger 1). Plessy states there were no multicultural schools in certain states. Attorneys for the Board of Education had to argue with this because it was true, but argued that the schools were equal in every way. They claimed the amount of funding, teachers, supplies, classes, courses and activities all depended on where the students went. The Attorneys also stated that in some states minority schools got better funding than white schools. Their claim was that segregation in schools did not harm the children because of these
Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education came to light in 1954 when a landmark ruling was made in Topeka, Kansas. The court made a remarkable decision when it ruled that the separate but equal system of education be abolished as it was provisioned in 1896 Plessy vs Ferguson. This is one of the defining moments in public education, African American and American history. Prior to this ruling, blacks were not allowed to attend the same schools as their white counterparts. Under this provision, the argument was that the form of education was fair and just, however, the schools in which the whites attended had better facilities.
His formal opinion states that “Segregation of white and colored children in public schools has a detrimental effect upon the colored children. The impact is greater when it has the sanction of the law, for the policy of separating the races is usually interpreted as denoting the inferiority of the Negro group…Any language in contrary to this finding is rejected. We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of “separate but equal” has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal” (“Separate Is Not Equal”). With this ruling physical facilities could be considered equal but children could not be segregated based on color.
Notаbly absent from the opinion, as it was in Plessy, is any citаtion to a Supreme Court cаse that considered whether the prаctice of segregating schools was a violation of the Fourteenth Аmendment. It was an open question for the Court. The Court аdmitted that the precedent to which it cited involved discriminаtion between whites and blacks rаther thаn other rаces. However, the Court found no аppreciable difference here—"the decision is within the discretion of the state in regulating its public schools, and does not conflict with the Fourteenth Аmendment."
Plessy v. Ferguson was a supreme court case in 1896 and the decision entrenched legal segregation and it made “separate but equal” the law of the land. Brown v. Board of Education was also a supreme court case in 1954 and it ended legal segregation. Plessy was a black man (great grandmother was black) and Plessy violated Louisiana law by sitting in the white part of the train. Plessy sued based on the 14th Amendment and Equal Protection clause. Brown v. Board was a supreme court case that Brown sued the board of Education because the schools were unequal.
The problem that the Supreme Court was facing was whether the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution mandates the states to desegregate in the public schools, which means the policy of “separate but equal” that those states followed is unconstitutional or not. Morally, segregation is unacceptable, but it was difficult to justify the idea legally under the 14th amendment because the defense lawyer claimed that the issue was about the control of public schools, it should be the “states” right issue that Congress was not intended to be covered by the 14th amendment. Until the second extensive discussion, the newly appointed Justice Warren noticed the policy, and Warren Court had agreed that segregation was inequitable and unconstitutional. However, he considered that in this case, it is very important to reach unanimous. So he wrote an opinion for dissenting justices to convince them to reach the significance unanimous, and finally, Warren court made a 9-0 unanimous decision that “separate educational facilities are fundamentally
Board of Education case a parent of a black child named Oliver Brown went to the government in concern that the 14th Amendment, made from the Plessy v. Ferguson case, stated that the race separation should be "Separate but equal". But Oliver Brown believed that this law was not being followed. The white public schools were much different than the black public schools. The white schools were much cleaner, nicer, had better education, more teachers, etc. But the black schools had nothing even close to those opportunities in their school.
With the help of the infamous Thurgood Marshall, they argued exactly that. The thirteen Topeka families and Thurgood Marshall argued that by segregating the schools their rights as citizens of the United States of America were not only being violated but ripped away from them. Segregation not only took away African Americans’ rights but also caused very traumatic damage. In the Brown vs. Board of Education, case psychologist Dr. Kenneth B. Clark testified that not only was this removing their rights and causing a huge inconvenience for these individuals but segregation also did something to each child mentality. In his studies, Dr. Clark did a psychology evaluation using dolls.
" The Summary of the Decision in Brown vs. Education states “Departing from the Court’s earlier reasoning in Plessy, the justices here argued that separating children solely on the basis of race created a feeling of inferiority in the 'hearts and minds' of African American children.” This proves that people of all races should be able to associate with each other rather than being segregated due to that very same
Brown v. Board of Education The Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case consisted of 5 different court cases and many other laws passed during the time of Reconstruction. The most popular case was the case in Topeka, Kansas in 1954 which involved a young eight year old girl by the name of Linda Brown. She was forced to attend the all black school, which was roughly 21 blocks away from her house.(Infoplease) Originally her parents believed that she would be permitted to attend the school near their home however, this school was made with the intent of having only white children being enrolled.
Brown v. Board of Education was a consolidated case that was a landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court in 1954, which faced the question, “Does the segregation of public education based solely on race violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?” that declared that “separate but equal educational facilities for racial minorities are inherently unequal violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment” (Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1)). This essay will thoroughly cover the background and context of this case, the arguments presented on both sides, contemporary and legal reactions to the case, the impact of the decision, and its current relevance. The case originated in Topeka, Kansas
Whites believed African Americans should not share anything with whites. There were special schools, churches, restaurants, etc.. for African Americans. This is how segregation is processed for most people, the legal separation of African Americans and whites. However, some historians believe physical force, economic intimidation, and psychological control through social messages of low worth should be added to that understanding (Novkov 1). The case of Brown v. Board of Education tried to break this concept.
Practice of Contemporary Higher Education Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark United States Supreme Court case that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional (Kashatus, 2004). This decision had a significant impact on higher education in the United States by paving the way for greater integration and diversity in colleges and universities. While the immediate impact of the decision was felt in K-12 education, it also had a significant impact on higher education. The ruling in Brown v. Board of Education fundamentally challenged the concept of "separate but equal" educational opportunities for black and white students, and set the stage for the integration of
Segregating children by the color of their skin is unconstitutional. In the article ‘Brown v. Board of Education’ from Archives.gov, it says, “In this milestone decision, the Supreme Court ruled that separating children in public schools on the basis of race was unconstitutional”. If the children were all to learn equally and have equal treatment no matter the color of their skin, why should they be separated? The unequal environment black students were in was a huge disadvantage in their education and future. The article “Brown v. Board of Education” from history.com says, “... which agreed that public school segregation had a ‘detrimental effect upon the colored children’ and contributed to ‘a sense of inferiority,’ but still upheld the ‘separate but equal’ doctrine”.
In his complaint, Brown contended that schools for Black children were in no way equal and that their constitutional rights to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment were being violated and denied by the segregated educational systems. According to the article "Brown v. Board of Education," the board admitted there was an issue but declined to take action despite having the matter heard by the US District Court for Kansas. “The case went before the U.S. District Court in Kansas, which agreed that public school segregation had a “detrimental effect upon the colored children” and contributed to “a sense of inferiority,” but still upheld the “separate but equal” doctrine” (Editor, 2009). Their reasoning for this attitude stemmed from the concept that separation should be legalized because all-Black and all-White schools had identical facilities, transportation, curricula, and so on. The Browns eventually appealed their case to the United States Supreme Court, claiming that segregated schools were inequitable despite having equivalent amenities.
Decades ago, children of various races could not go to school together in many locations of the United States. School districts could segregate students, legally, into different schools according to the color of their skin. The law said these separate schools had to be equal. Many schools for children that possessed color were of lesser quality than the schools for white students. To have separate schools for the black and white children became a basic rule in southern society.