Brown v. Board of Education

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, {{ussc|347|483|1954}} was a landmark case of the United States Supreme Court which explicitly outlawed de jure racial segregation of public education facilities (legal establishment of separate government-run schools for blacks and whites), ruling so on the grounds that the doctrine of "separate but equal" public education could never truly provide black Americans with facilities of the same standards available to white Americans. A companion case dealt with the constitutionality of segregation in the District of Columbia, (not a state and therefore not subject to the Fourteenth Amendment), Bolling v. Sharpe, {{ussc|347|497|1954}}.

The decision

On 17 May, 1954 the Warren Court handed down a unanimous 9-0 decision which stated, in no uncertain terms, that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."

Related Topics:
17 May - 1954 - Warren

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The 17 May, 1954 decision reversed the Court's previous decision in Cumming v. Richmond County Board of Education, (1899)*, which had specifically validated the segregation of public schools. Brown did not, however, result in the immediate desegregation of America's public schools, nor did it mandate desegregation of public accommodations, such as restaurants or bathrooms, that were owned by private parties, which would not be accomplished until the passage of Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. However, it was a giant step forwards for the civil rights movement, placing the weight of the Federal Judiciary squarely behind the forces of desegregation.

Related Topics:
17 May - Cumming v. Richmond County Board of Education - 1899 - * - Desegregation - Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Civil rights movement

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Brown is often referred to as Brown I, because the following year, 1955, the Court completed its ruling. In this second Brown decision, "Brown II," the Warren Court ordered the states' compliance with Brown I "with all deliberate speed." Brown II was argued by Robert L. Carter, who had earlier initiated some of the cases consolidated at the Supreme Court into Brown I. Even so, formal compliance with the provisions of these two cases was not expedited, and in the South most public schools would not be desegregated until about 1970 under the Nixon administration. Nearly twenty years after Brown school desegregation would come to the court's attention again in two cases involving the use of busing to integrate students across school districts: Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, {{ussc|402|1|1971}} and Milliken v. Bradley, {{ussc|418|717|1974}}.

Related Topics:
1955 - Robert L. Carter - Supreme Court - The South - 1970 - Nixon - Busing - Integrate - Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education - 1971 - Milliken v. Bradley - 1974

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

:"Today, education is perhaps the most important function of state and local governments. Compulsory school attendance laws and the great expenditures for education both demonstrate our recognition of the importance of education to our democratic society. It is required in the performance of our most basic public responsibilities, even service in the armed forces. It is the very foundation of good citizenship. Today it is a principal instrument in awakening the child to cultural values, in preparing him for later professional training, and in helping him to adjust normally to his environment. In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education. Such an opportunity, where the state has undertaken to provide it, is a right which must be made available to all on equal terms." http://www.washtimes.com/op-ed/20031211-085722-8465r.htm

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~