Brown V. Board: Lgal Changes in Respect to Segregation

Brown v. Board of Education is a case that changed the educational system in America and altered the United States by getting rid of segregation in schools. The effect of the ruling not only altered education but also affected race relations in a multitude of ways. This case helped take a step forward to reduce segregation and discrimination in a country that had followed the status quo for hundreds of years. There had been many other cases in America that went against segregated schools in states like South Carolina, Virginia, and Delaware.

These cases also took a step forward and helped bring the issue to light. The cases were denied by the court at first, but advocates for desegregation kept on pushing forward until the case ended up reaching the Supreme Court.

The schools in the United States, particularly in the South, were segregated. This signified that minorities did not receive an equal level of textbooks, black students were not allowed to learn because they were not provided the facilities to give them the chance to, this had an effect on their careers Teachers that worked in “black” schools were not paid as much as the teachers that worked in white schools, the money funded towards white students was almost 4 times as much as the government provided for its black students. It made it possible for white students and black students to go to the same school be aware of the fact that they were equal, that it was not just on race that held superiority to the other. Ruby Bridges, the first colored person to go to an all black school had to be protected by several Marshalls. This shows how controversial and transformative the court case was. It did much more than just allow black and white students to go to school together. Brown v. Board of Education altered unjust treatment in the United States, it provided equal opportunity for African-Americans, and it shifted race relationships.

The issue was first brought to light when Reverend Oliver Brown didn’t think it was fair that his daughter Lisa could not get to schools in Topeka only because she was black. Joy Hakim states in her book, “Linda couldn’t go to that school because she was black and the schools in Topeka were segregated. Linda’s father, the Reverend Oliver Brown, didn’t think that was right” (Hakim 68). The segregation in schools prohibited black students from going to schools where only white students were allowed to go to those schools. This caused black students to be denied from receiving a proper education because resources and money were scarce for them. Reverend Oliver Brown brought this issue to light when he realized that in his neighborhood of Topeka his own daughter could not attend the same schools as the white students just because she was black.

Besides Reverend Brown there were tons of other locals working towards ending segregation in schools. At first the case was dismissed in the court but this did not stop them from their fight for integration. They ended up pushing the case all the way to the Supreme Court. There were lots of protests and rallies trying to get them to come to the conclusion that there needed to be integrated schools. They protested outside of the Supreme Court building and even little kids and white adults joined in on the protests and rallies. At first things were not looking good for them, but when the current leader of the Supreme Court died and had to be replaced their hopes were restored. The newly elected leader Earl Warren was a kindhearted man who they knew would come to the right decision. He then outlawed segregation in educational facilities and then got the rest of the members on the Supreme Court to agree with his decision and to respect it. This decision did not go well with the South, and they found new ways a mind loopholes to still have segregation in their states, such as forming private all white schools and shutting down all the public schools in that state.

Brown v. Board of education impacted race relations by letting white students and students of color be able to learn together, therefore giving them the opportunity to learn that there is no difference between them and even maybe be able to establish friendly relationships with them. Although some still chose to be racist and follow the old status quo. Some people changed while other stayed the same and realized that the laws had a such little power over the race relations in America, it was up to the people to decide who they wanted to be with and how they would act to one another. “ Americans soon found that Congress and the Courts were unable to change the attitudes of Americans in respect to race relations. Certainly, America moved toward the ideals of equality and justice in the public arena, but as seen in the race riots of the 1960s and the civil disturbances in Los Angeles in 1992, the inner life of the nation is still resistant to change” (https://www.pbs.org). There were people that still believed in white supremacy and believed that there should not be any integrated schooling system. There were lots of protests against the supreme court decision, and a lot of them turned them turned into violent riots. Lots of states found ways to be able to still keep segregated school in a way that the final ruling did not address. They decided to make private all-white schools in their states and shut down all of the public schools so that the black students wouldn't be able to go to school.

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