Friday, May 18, 2007

May 17:


1954 : Brown v. Board of Ed is decided

In a major civil rights victory, the U.S. Supreme Court hands down an
unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, ruling
that racial segregation in public educational facilities is
unconstitutional. The historic decision, which brought an end to
federal tolerance of racial segregation, specifically dealt with Linda
Brown, a young African American girl who had been denied admission to
her local elementary school in Topeka, Kansas, because of the color of
her skin.

In 1896, the Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson that "separate
but equal" accommodations in railroad cars conformed to the 14th
Amendment's guarantee of equal protection. That ruling was used to
justify segregating all public facilities, including elementary
schools. However, in the case of Linda Brown, the white school she
attempted to attend was far superior to her black alternative and
miles closer to her home. The National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People (NAACP) took up Linda's cause, and in 1954 Brown v.
Board of Education of Topeka reached the Supreme Court. African
American lawyer (and future Supreme Court justice) Thurgood Marshall
led Brown's legal team, and on May 17, 1954, the high court handed
down its decision.

In an opinion written by Chief Justice Earl Warren, the nation's
highest court ruled that not only was the "separate but equal"
doctrine unconstitutional in Linda's case, it was unconstitutional in
all cases because educational segregation stamped an inherent badge of
inferiority on African American students. A year later, after hearing
arguments on the implementation of their ruling, the Supreme Court
published guidelines requiring public school systems to integrate
"with all deliberate speed."

The Brown v. Board of Education decision served to greatly motivate
the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and ultimately led to
the abolishment of racial segregation in all public facilities and
accommodations.

history.com/tdih.do


1970 : Heyerdahl sails papyrus boat
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5008

1973 : Televised Watergate hearings begin
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5009

2004 : First legal same-sex marriage performed in Massachusetts
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5010

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