The decision made by the Supreme Court in this case is regarded as one of the greatest in the 20th century (Anderson, 2004). The unanimous decision by the Court ended the tolerance of racial segregation by the feds. According to the Court, the existence of racial segregation in public schools was a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment (Anderson, 2004). Citing Anderson (2004), the decision by the Court did not succeed in ensuring that public education in the US is fully desegregated; however, it managed to put the Constitution on the racial equality side. In this case, the Plaintiff was Oliver Brown. Brown is a parent to one of the teenagers who was denied admission to schools belonging to whites. According to the plaintiff, the racial segregation portrayed by Topeka violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution. Moreover, the black and white schools in the city were unequal.

On the other hand, the defendant was Topeka, Kansas school board. The decision by the federal district court was that under the Plessy doctrine, the segregated public schools were substantially equal (Anderson, 2004). The lower courts reviewed the psychological studies of black children in segregated schools and concluded that black girls had lower racial self-esteem. Therefore, according to the court, when you separate children based on race, there would be the creation of dangerous inferiority complexes that would have an adverse impact on their ability to learn. Moreover, the court further explained that in situations when there are equal tangible facilities between the whites and colored races schools, racial segregation in schools is inherently unequal (Anderson, 2004). The plaintiff appealed the case, and the ruling by Earl Warren, the Chief Justice was that there was a violation of the Equal Protection Clause.

In conclusion,  the court ruling on Brown v. Board of Education (1954) case was based on the decision that the separate but equal facilities are inherently unequal. Therefore, according to the opinion of the unanimous court, Topeka, Kansas school board violated the Equal Protection Clause. In my opinion, the court made the right decision because the ruling initiated the struggle for racial equality in the country. Moreover, the Court’s ruling plays a significant role in reducing inferiority in schools.

References

Anderson, W. (2004). Brown v. Board of Education: The case against school segregation. New York: Rosen Pub. Group.

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