Jim Crow laws and the “separate but equal” doctrine are not the American way. The Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education (1954) was a landmark case, which addressed the issue of segregation of children in public schools. It was regarded as highly unconstitutional because it discriminates against a particular group of US citizens. The case was one of the major parts of the civil rights movement, which allowed African American communities to acquire certain equality.
The circumstances of the case arose from the severe segregation of African American communities, where black children were not allowed in certain educational institutions solely due to their race. It is stated that in 1954, it was constitutional to segregate public institutions with a condition of them being equal (McBride). The appellants were Oliver Brown, Richard Lawton, Sadie Emmanuel, and others, and appellee was Board of Education of Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas, and others (“Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1)”).
The case was brought to the highest court because they appellants argued that the given segregation violated the Fourth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. The latter point means that no governmental unit can deny protection in an equal manner (“Equal Protection”). The Supreme Court did not attempt to implement the changes in an immediate manner, because they were highly aware of the opposition (“History – Brown v. Board of Education Re-enactment”). Therefore, the verdict was integrated gradually, but it was enough to give a boost to the civil rights movement.
The decision was made in favor of appellants, where the Supreme Court ruled out that there is an inherent inequality among “separate and equal” educational institutions. The foundation behind it is that such practices violated the Fourth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, which makes it unconstitutional (“Brown v. Board of Education (1954)”). The court’s decision was unanimous, and Chief Justice Earl Warren both wrote and delivered the verdict (Fox). It is important to state that the Supreme Court’s verdict did not include specific recommendations or instructions regarding the overall integration process of segregated schools into each other (“Brown v. Board of Education”).
In addition, there was a significant level of resistance to these changes, despite the Supreme Courts’ final decision. Warren managed to convince his colleagues to seriously respond to the case of Brown v. Board of Education (1954), initiated by the Association for the Progress of Colored People. This materially and organizationally secured a lawsuit from an African American railroad worker, Oliver Brown, outraged that his third-year-old daughter was denied access to a nearby school for the poor. The city of Topeka (Kansas), where the Browns family lived, was not a stronghold of wild racism, as the states of the deep South, but here the path to social mobility was closed for African Americans.
The judges carefully examined the circumstances of the case, and the unanimous sentence was not easy for them because they had to take into account a whole series of previous cases. In a second decision, announced a year after the first, Warren had to reassure the white southerners that he did not intend to demand immediate desegregation of schools, but it should be implemented with all conscious speed (“Brown v. Board of Education”). It is significant that this case laid the foundation for other decisions regarding the desegregation of all public places. With its legal policy in the field of racial relations, the Supreme Court aroused resistance.
After all, it appeared in a very unusual role not as a political provocateur and not as a brake on progressive undertakings, but as the initiator of new, reformist state policy. It became easier for the court to pursue this course, since by that time, in the face of many times increased pressure from the African American movement, liberal ideas were penetrating the White House and Congress. The branches of the state mechanism begin to act, if not for one, then at least not interfering with each other.
The given case can be considered as a landmark in American history, which allowed end discrimination and racism by giving African American people a constitutional right for equal education. Therefore, today, the case affects the US population in a highly profound manner, where there is a lack of severe segregation in society. The given case and its decision fueled the civil rights movement because the minorities were constitutionally protected. Racial and ethnic diversity is a constant not only of North American society, but also a hallmark of the US higher education system.
The overall profound effect of the given case can still be felt today. Modern American educational system not only became inclusive for African American communities, but also for many other ethnic groups as well as international students. On the one hand, there has been an undoubted increase in the representation of racial and national minorities at different levels of US higher education. On the other hand, in the system of higher education, the underrepresentation of significant groups of national minorities and, above all, African Americans, Hispanic and Native Americans, remains. It should also be noted the preservation of the dominant position of white Americans both at the level of obtaining university and scientific degrees, and in the structure of the teaching staff.
It is important to note that two facts are noteworthy, such as the steady integration of Asian Americans, who have the highest growth rates at all levels of higher education. This also applies to a significant increase in the share of non-residents, that is, foreign citizens in the total number of degree recipients. Another key manifestation of the given case is that there has been an increase in the number of students who do not identify with a particular racial or ethnic group and, on the contrary, indicate that they belong to two or more such groups.
In conclusion, it is important to note that the Brown v. Board of Education (1954) case was a landmark case, which greatly helped to end segregation based on race. The Supreme court’s decision was manifested in the fact that it was unconstitutional to have “separate but equal” facilities because it directly violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourth Amendment.
Although there was a certain degree of resistance to the decision of the court, I agree that it was one of the significant improvements in American history, and its effect was life-changing for many African American communities. Today, they have an equal opportunity to education and are not segregated based on their race. In the future, this case will be an example of the fact that the US constitution cannot be manipulated to oppress minorities.
References
“Brown v. Board of Education.” History. 2020.
“Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1).” Oyez.
“Brown v. Board of Education (1954).” OurDocuments.
“Equal Protection.” Cornell Law School. Web.
Fox, John. ” Earl Warren.” Thirteen.
“History – Brown v. Board of Education Re-enactment.” United States Courts.
McBride, Alex. “Brown v. Board of Education (1954).” Thirteen.