Brown consolidated cases from Kansas, South Carolina, Virginia, and Delaware brought by Black schoolchildren seeking admission to public schools attended by white children. The children had been excluded under state laws requiring or permitting racial segregation in public education. In most of the cases, lower courts denied relief under the "separate but equal" doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537, though some courts found the Black schools inferior or being equalized. The Supreme Court addressed whether segregation itself, even where tangible factors were substantially equal, violated the Fourteenth Amendment.
Does state-imposed racial segregation in public public schools, even where physical facilities and other tangible factors are equal, deny Black children the equal protection of the laws under the Fourteenth Amendment?
The Equal Protection Clause forbids state-imposed racial segregation in public education when segregation itself creates inequality. In public schooling, separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.
Yes. State-mandated or state-permitted segregation of children in public schools solely on the basis of race deprives minority children of equal educational opportunities and violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The Court found the history of the Fourteenth Amendment inconclusive as to segregated schooling and therefore evaluated public education in its contemporary importance. Education is a fundamental governmental function and must be made available to all on equal terms when the state provides it. Even if buildings, curricula, and teacher qualifications are equal, segregation imposes intangible harms by generating a sense of inferiority that affects children's motivation and ability to learn. Relying in part on the logic of Sweatt v. Painter, 339 U.S. 629 (1950), and McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, 339 U.S. 637 (1950), the Court concluded that segregation itself makes public schools unequal and rejected contrary language in Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896), in the education context.
Brown is the landmark decision that repudiated the "separate but equal" doctrine in public education and became the constitutional foundation for modern school desegregation and broader equal protection doctrine. It directly rejected Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896), insofar as that case supported segregated public schooling, and built on Missouri ex rel. Gaines v. Canada, 305 U.S. 337 (1938), Sipuel v. Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma, 332 U.S. 631 (1948), Sweatt v. Painter, 339 U.S. 629 (1950), and McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, 339 U.S. 637 (1950). Its remedial sequel, Brown v. Board of Education (Brown II), 349 U.S. 294 (1955), addressed implementation of desegregation.
Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896) |
Verified |
Gaines v. Canada, 305 U.S. 337 (1938) |
Verified |
Sipuel v. Board of Regents of the University of, 332 U.S. 631 (1948) |
Abstain |
Sweatt v. Painter, 339 U.S. 629 (1950) |
Verified |
McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, 339 U.S. 637 (1950) |
Abstain |
Brown v. Board of Education, 349 U.S. 294 (1955) |
Abstain |
Sweatt v. Painter, 339 U.S. 629 (1950) |
Verified |
McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, 339 U.S. 637 (1950) |
Verified |
Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896) |
Verified |
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