Brown vs Board of Education 1954

Brown Vs Board of Education (1954) is extremely important to the Civil Rights Movement. Essentially, Brown vs. Board of Education made it possible for Black and White students to go to school together. It made segregation illegal in public schools. It overturned the previous ruling of Plessey vs. Ferguson, which deemed segregation in schools constitutional and they would be "separate but equal" The reality was that the schools were separate, but NOT equal. African American students went to school miles away from their homes and the schools were dirty, unsanitary, and dangerous and did not promote a healthy learning environment. Brown VS BOE took place in Topeka, Kansas and eventually made it to the Supreme Court. The unanimous decision verified that the segregation of public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. This ensured equal schooling opportunity for blacks and whites. Unfortunately, this was not an over night change and students were still segregated based on "custom" rather than law, but nonetheless this put the country and constitution on a federal level in support of African Americans gaining Civil Rights. 

Source: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/landmark_brown.html

 

James Meredith Against Ole Miss

In September of 1962 President John F. Kennedy finally had to intervene when the all white, 114-year old University of Mississippi had their first black student register. James Meredith was a Negro Air Force veteran who registered at the University of Mississippi. Ole Miss attempted to keep him out but lost that battle. Meredith said “Someone had to seek admission to the University of Mississippi and I decided to do so.” [1] The Governor of Mississippi showed up to Ole Miss on James Meredith’s first day to block him from entering. President JFK then sent 320 U.S Marshals to the university and authorized the Department of Defense to send troops to aid if necessary. Additionally, he went on national television and urged students to “show your courage to accept those laws with which you disagree…” [2]

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[1] Ward, Year's Pictorial History of the American Negro, 98.

[2] Ward, Year's Pictorial History of the American Negro, 98.

Little Rock 9

The Little Rock 9 is a direct result of the Brown vs Board of Education Ruling, nine students in Little Rock, Arkansas were escorted into the public all-white high school for the first time in history. This decision was made on September 4th, 1957 by the Governor of Arkensas, Orval Faubus, as he arranged for the National Guard to set barriers and create a safe entry into the schools for these students. The "Little Rock 9" first entered the newly desegregated school on September 25th, and bravely walked in unison together through a crowd of angry protestors.