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Paper on the Brown v. Board of Education Road to Justice Paper Central Study Maura Gleeson February 2, 2011

Even after slavery ended, under segregation, African-American kids and white kids didn’t go to school together. For example, in Clarendon County, S.C., the white students went to very nice schools with new books, a cafeteria, and a gym, but the African American students had old books that were falling apart, no cafeteria, and no gym. This was because the school board spent $179 on each white student and only $43 on each African American student. The schools for African Americans were over-crowded so 3 classes were held in the auditorium. There were 30 school buses for the white children and none for the African American children. By the 1940s, community members and civil rights leaders decided to do something about this unjust law. They tried various ways to protest and used the courts to overturn the unjust law. Even though powerful forces maintained segregation such as local courts, law agencies, the state and local governments, groups of people still banded together to fight segregation. Some of the reasons people wanted to help was because they thought it could help change the law, or they wanted a good education for the children, or they wanted to be treated fairly. Not everyone wanted to join. Some people didn’t want to get fired, and some thought the schools were fine, and some were just scared. Groups of people often fought together to make effective challenges. Here are some of the things they tried: Petitioning the School board In 1949, more than 100 African American people signed a petition about the schools and school buses. The petition said the schools were “inadequate and unhealthy…old and overcrowded and in a dilapidated condition.” The school board rejected the petition. Try to Enroll at a New School It was very important to try to enroll African Americans at a white school because it helped prove a point in fighting segregation. Some of the children tried to enroll at a white school but were turned away even though the school had room and because of that they filed a lawsuit. Staging a Walkout One way they protested the schools was staging walkouts. One girl made the whole student body go on strike to protest the poor conditions in the schools. They went to the white schools’ superintendent to demand better schools. Lobbying Lawmakers People went to their lawmakers and asked them to make a change. Even Harry Truman, the President, asked the congress to pass a law against segregation. The congress ignored him. Sue the School board In 1952, the court said that the African American schools should be made equal, but 3 judges pointed out that segregation had been practiced for 80 years in Virginia and was part of the states constitution. The judges wrote “we have found no hurt or harm to either race.” Lawyers fighting segregated schools showed how the unequal schools hurt the children. The judge said that the children that sued should be allowed to go to the nearest white school. Finally, after many obstacles and many tries, they ruled schools must integrate! Another way civil rights leaders tried overturn segregation is appealing to the local government. The local lawmakers would not listen to them because they only paid attention to the people that elected them. At that point African Americans could not vote. They didn’t have enough power to change the law. When appealing to the local governments didn’t work the civil rights leaders turned to the federal government. The leaders found an ally in the President. After congress refused to pass a law to end segregation, President Harry Truman issued two executive orders. The first desegregated the armed forces. The second provided fair employment practices in the government. Congress continued to resist desegregation. The Congress signed the “Southern Manifesto” which said the decision against segregated schools was “a clear abuse of judicial power.” The Supreme Court proved to be the most helpful branch of government to the civil rights leaders, but only after several unhelpful decisions. For example, in the 1896 Plessy  decision, the Court ruled that segregation was legal. The NAACP attorneys knew that they would need to convince the Court to overturn this decision. To do this, the NAACP encouraged African American students to enroll in white schools and brought a lawsuit in the lower courts when they were rejected by the school board. For example, in the Belton  decision, NAACP attorneys showed that a Delaware school was unequal and that segregation was harmful to African American students. This decision was supported by the Supreme Court when it decided the Brown v. Board of Education <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> case. In that case, the court found that segregation was not legal. It took many years but finally, African American kids and white kids were allowed to go to school together. Segregation was fought in many ways, from community protests such as walkouts and petitions to legal battles in the Supreme Court. A number of allies were gathered along the way, and they helped persuade the local and federal governments. Defeating segregation in the schools was a major victory for the civil rights movement.