Brown versus Board of Education was a landmark case in the United States Supreme Court. The case had a very great impact on the personal rights of individuals as will be fructified in the evaluation.
- Basic Information
The title of the case was Oliver Brown, et al. v. Board of Education of Topeka, et al. The case number was 347 U.S. 483.
- Plaintiff
The plaintiffs in the case were Oliver Brown, et al.
- Defendant
The defendant in the case was the Board of Education of Topeka, et al.
The case Oliver Brown, et al. v. Board of Education of Topeka, et al number 347 U.S. 483 was argued on the ninth of December in 1952. It was reargued on the eighth of December in 1953. The case was decided on the seventeenth of May in 1954.
- Judgment Affirmed or Reversed
The judgment in the case was reversed effectively overturning the ruling that was made in 1896 in the case of Homer A. Plessy v. John H. Ferguson.
- Issue/charges being discussed
The issue that was being discussed was the demand for the reversal of the policy of racial segregation ion the school district of Topeka in Kansas. The Topeka Board of Education operated separate elementary schools for black and white students. This was permitted, although not required under the 1879 Kansa Law.
- Evidence presented during the arguments
The plaintiff presented evidence showing that even though the facilities in the segregated schools were equal in terms of quality, the segregation was harmful to the black community and was also unconstitutional. In backing his argument, the plaintiff alluded to the United States constitution and Fourteenth Amendment. This is the equal protection clause.
- Conclusions of the judge/judges
The judges unanimously held that segregation of students attending public schools was in violation of the equal protection clause as enshrined in the fourteenth amendment. This was because there was inherent inequality in separate facilities. This holding reversed the judgment passed by the District Court of Kansas.
- Connection with amendment/personal freedom topic
Individual freedoms are protected by the constitution. The fourteenth amendment of the United States constitution provide for equal protection. Segregated school facilities were in bad faith and in contravention of this clause because it denied students their individual freedoms to choose the schools to attend.
