Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka was a 1954 Supreme Court case in which the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional. The ruling squashed the “separate but equal” doctrine that many school districts followed. The “separate but equal” doctrine followed a belief system where segregated public facilities were fine as long as the facilities for blacks and whites were equal. Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark decision because the Supreme Court held that “separate but equal” facilities are inherently unequal and violate the protections of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court reasoned that the segregation of public education based on race instilled a sense of inferiority that had a hugely detrimental effect on the education and personal growth of African American children.
The separate but equal doctrine was the foundation of the Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow laws gave whites the freedom to exclude black people from sharing public facilities and public spaces with whites. Public facilities such as restrooms, parks, hotels, water fountains, etc. were separated or banned blacks. There was often a separate entry for blacks if they were allowed. For example, whites could board buses in the front door. Alternatively, blacks had to pay in front, exit the bus, and walk to the rear door to board the bus. Blacks also had to remain seated in the back of the bus. In theaters, blacks entered in the rear and were only allowed to sit in the rear or the balcony in the “colored” sections. Under Jim Crow, blacks could not eat at many restaurants. If allowed, they had to enter through the rear and have their orders to go.
Oliver Leon Brown of Topeka, Kansas was a minister, pastor, welder, and father to three children. One of his children, Linda Brown, became the primary face of the court case. His daughter attended a black elementary school miles from home. Mr. Brown believed his daughter’s journey to school was a hardship and the school she attended was unequal to the closer, white elementary school in their neighborhood. Brown’s case was among other cases opposing school segregation. The cases were combined and Brown became the lead plaintiff. He became the lead plaintiff not only because his name was alphabetically first. But also because he could strongly appeal to the jury as a married and working black man. The lawsuit was backed and funded by the NAACP. Thurgood Marshall served as the chief attorney for the plaintiffs. Thurgood Marshall would later be appointed as the first black Supreme Court justice.
Brown won the Supreme Court case by a unanimous decision on May 17, 1954. As expected, school districts across the country were slow to enact the change. Looking back, some argue that blacks lost more than they gained. Many black educators lost their jobs because white teachers and administrators assumed leadership over schools that were integrated. White parents did not want blacks teaching their children. Black students attending integrated schools were subjected to racism along with verbal and physical abuse from teachers and classmates. Black students were punished stricter and more often than white classmates. White teachers were quicker to label black students with learning disabilities which meant black students were removed from their classes. Most “special education” classes were filled with black students.
Today, most cities and schools remain segregated. Separate regardless of equality is the current status. White parents are able to afford private schools for their children. The majority of black parents are unable to afford private schooling and therefore private schools are segregated by de facto. Majority black schools still continue to operate with minimum funds, with aged and used books passed down, and in schools that are dilapidated. Some schools today are operating in cities with poisoned water such as Flint and Benton Harbor. Black educators are still relegated to schools serving black students, and are often paid lower than their white counterparts.
The fight for integration, equality, and acceptance was and continues to be a struggle for African-Americans. Some believe integration did and continues to do more harm than good. Others continue to demand acceptance from white society. And others believe that as long as there is separation, there will never be equality or acceptance.
Oliver Brown died of a heart attack in 1961. He was 42 years old.
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