Brown+vs.+Board

The plaintiffs of Brown vs. Board of Education were Oliver Brown and thirteen other parents from Topeka, organized by the NAACP. The defendant was the Topeka Board of Education. Brown vs. Board of Education actually refers to this case and four other cases that disputed similar topics in Delaware, South Carolina, Virginia, and Washington D.C.
 * BASIC FACTS OF THE CASES (more than one) (check video, [|Link 1], [|Link 2], [|Link 3])**

The plaintiffs led by future Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall argued that the Supreme Court had misinterpreted the 14th Amendment in Plessy vs. Ferguson, stating that equal protection of the laws did not allow for racial segregation. They also argued that the 14th Amendment gave the government the right to prohibit any action that discriminated based on race. Lastly, the plaintiffs explained that racial segregation in schools was psychologically harmful to black children.
 * MAIN ARGUMENTS OF THE PLAINTIFF (for integration) (check [|Link 1])**

The defendants argued that the Constitution did not require integration of schools, that educational segregation was a regional custom and therefore states should be able to make their own laws, and that segregated schools were not harmful to black children. They also explained that the states were trying to equalize white and black schools, but it would be a while before black children, who were still living with the effects of slavery, would be able to compete academically with white children.
 * MAIN ARGUMENTS OF THE DEFENDANTS (for segregation) (check [|Link 1])**

The Supreme Courth agreed to hear the case in June of 1952. Many of the justices doubted whether the Constitution had the power to end educational segregation. But, in September 1953, Chief Justice Fred Vinson died. President Eisenhower replaced him with Earl Warren, whose leadership helped produce a unanimous decision for Brown.
 * THE CHANGE IN THE COURT (leading to a decision) (check** [|**Link 1**]**)**

The decision, written by Earl Warren stated that it wasn't clear whether those who wrote the 14th Amendment intended for educational segregation. He also maintained that the "seperate but equal" only pertained to transportation. Lastly, he explained that subjecting African Americans to segregation in schools was not equal protection of the law.
 * THE COURT DECISION (in your own words) (check** [|**Link 1**] **and Link 2)**

**ENFORCING THE DECISION (discuss "with all deliberate speed) (Check [|Link 1] ****)** The Supreme Court ordered that states end segregation in schools with "all deliberate speed." This was open to interpretation and so change was slowed, mostly by protesting from southern whites

African Americans pushed for the enforcement of the Brown vs. Board of Education decision, but were unprepared for the doggedness of white southerners to keep segregation in schools. The white southerners were likewise surprised by the perseverance of African Americans in integrating schools. The push for integration of schools led to campaigns for general social equality, not just by African Americans but by women, disabled persons, and other minorities.
 * THE IMPACT and LEGACY** **(Check** [|**Link 1**]**)**