Brown v. Board of Education
1954 - The End of 'Separate but Equal'
Constitutional Clause
14th Amendment - Equal Protection Clause
"No State shall...deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
Memory Tricks
Remember the Name
"BROWN Breaks BOARD Barriers" - Brown broke the barriers of the Board of Education's segregation policies.
Remember the Subject
"Equal Schools = Equal People" - The 14th Amendment's equal protection means schools must treat all students equally.
Remember the Clause
"14 = For(4)teen = For Equal Protection" - The 14th Amendment is "for" equal protection under the law.
Remember the Year
"1954 - High Five For Equality" - 5 from '54 reminds you this was a "high five" moment for civil rights.
Constitutional Connection
Does the segregation of public education based solely on race violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?
Facts of the Case
This case was the consolidation of cases arising in Kansas, South Carolina, Virginia, Delaware, and Washington D.C. relating to the segregation of public schools on the basis of race.
In each of the cases, African American students had been denied admittance to certain public schools based on laws allowing public education to be segregated by race. They argued that such segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The plaintiffs were denied relief in the lower courts based on Plessy v. Ferguson, which held that racially segregated public facilities were legal so long as the facilities for blacks and whites were equal. This was known as the "separate but equal" doctrine.
Holding/Decision
Unanimous Decision: 9-0 (Warren Court)
After lengthy and heated debates, the court as led by Chief Justice Warren, voted in a unanimous ruling that segregation by states was never "equal".
The "equal protection" clause of the 14th Amendment was not being enforced by the states. The federal court stepped in and changed the way states would run this part of their intra-state school systems since a fundamental Constitutional right was being denied by the states.
Historic Impact
This decision effectively overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and the "separate but equal" doctrine, marking a turning point in the Civil Rights Movement.
Key Principle
"Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."
Paired Case
Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896
Homer Plessy volunteered to test the new Louisiana law of segregating railroad passenger cars. Even though he looked white, his birth certificate listed him as "negro" due to distant black ancestors. Could Louisiana segregate him from the white cars? Yes, since the court claimed, at the time, that states could create such "equal" facilities for whites and blacks.
Writing Practice
AP-Style FRQ Prompt
In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court ruled that segregation in public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
- Explain how the holding in Brown v. Board differed from the holding in Plessy v. Ferguson.
- Describe one way the decision expanded civil rights protections.
- Explain how the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause was used to justify the ruling.
Tip: Compare and contrast the "separate but equal" doctrine with the idea that separation is "inherently unequal." Use specific evidence from both cases.