...Throughout history, many laws and acts have been decided upon and put into place by the court systems in the United States; the Plessy v. Ferguson case was no exception. The actions of the Committee of Citizens are what brought the Plessy v. Ferguson case into existence. As a result of these actions and the unjust case, many unfair regulations and laws were created and enforced. Some of those laws include the Separate-but-Equal doctrine and the Jim Crow laws. Every event surrounding the Plessy v. Ferguson case had a great impact on situations that occurred later in history. A certain circumstance surrounding the Committee of Citizens and their use of Homer Plessy in their fight against the Separate Car Act, along with segregation laws altogether,...
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...Plessy v. Ferguson Topic Equal Protection, specifically "Separate but equal" racial segregation as it is applied to the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment is what is at play in this case. Relief Sought The mixed-breed Homer Plessy would plan to challenge the constitutionality of the Separate Car Act for denying him the right to equal protection of the law and, by the process, he could possibly terminate statutory racial segregation within the United States. Therefore, Plessy deliberately broke this Act with the intention of forcing the courts to rule on whether segregation was or not in accordance with the Constitution. On the other hand, the State of Louisiana attempted to enforce segregation on public conveyances and continued to supply "separate" public facilities for whites and Negroes on the theory that its "separate but equal" accommodations satisfied constitutional requirements and tended to maintain social stability. Issues Does Louisiana's Separate Car Act violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment by requiring racial segregation in public facilities? In other words, does the clause bar a state from requiring segregation in public accommodations on account of race, even if the facilities are "equal"?...
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...Is separate really equal? America is based off of their Constitution. We are known for our rights and freedom. Unfortunately not everyone has always been equal. In 1957, The Little Rock Nine started to change the segregation between races in school systems. Before Little Rock, there had been many fights for equality. Some of the main cases are Plessy V. Ferguson and Brown V. Board of Ed. After the Plessy V. Ferguson case it was agreed upon that every school would stay separate, but had to be equal, and this created the Plessy Doctrine. How could it be equal if they were separate? Even though they were supposed to be equal, the resources and education were dramatically different. Later in 1954 Linda Brown’s father decided he was not going...
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...The Plessy V. Ferguson stands as one of the most pivotal moments in American legal history and shaped the course of civil rights and segregation in the U.S. This case was decided in 1896 as it established the doctrine of separate but equal which sanction racial segregation in public facilities. While seeking relief, the states were passing legislation that coded inequalities between races. These legislations stated that there would be separate schools for separate races. This case originated in 1892 as a challenge to the Louisiana Separate Car Act which was in 1890 the law required that all railroads operating in the state provide equal but separate accommodations for white and African American passengers and prohibited passengers from entering accommodations other than...
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...Homer A. Plessy (P), who resided in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was defined by Louisiana law as a prosperous businessman and “octaroon” ”—one-eighth African American. Traveling by rail from New Orleans to Baton Rouge, Plessy refused to sit in a designated black railway carriage car and instead attempted to sit in an all-white railway car. Plessy was arrested for violating an 1890 Louisiana statute stipulating segregated “separate but equal” railroad accommodations. Under this statute, individuals using facilities not designated for their race were criminally liable. Plessy had acted on behalf of a committee to purposely commit an offence in order to initiate a case that would stand against the Jim Crow laws –laws that mandated racial segregation. Justice John H. Ferguson (D) presided over...
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...An incident in 1892 involving an African American man Homer Plessy refused to sit in a Jim Crow car breaking a Louisiana law. In 1890 the law was put into play providing for “equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races” on its railroads. Plessy brought before Judge John H. Ferguson of criminal court for New Orleans, who upheld the law. The law later challenged by the Supreme Court on the grounds that it conflicted within the thirteenth and fourteenth amendment. The court later said that the law did not conflict with the Thirteenth amendment. The Court avoided discussion of the protection granted by the clause in the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids the states to make laws depriving citizens of their “privileges or...
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...need to find a case that deals with Due Process, the Equal Protection Clause or Delegation. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) What are the important and relevant faces of the case? The Case is based upon The Equal Protection Clause, in which, this case occurred one hundred and nineteen years ago, but it was very interesting as to see what has changed during the century. In 1890, Louisiana State passed laws prohibited races to sit together on railroads; something in common with segregation in the south in the 1950’s and buses. Trains were required to have seating for different races and were divided by curtains or some form of barricade to prevent the races from sitting beside one another. Homer Adolph Plessy, a Louisiana businessman, who lived a society of whites and blacks, happen to have a black grandparent, in which Louisiana law defined him as an “octaroon”, one eight of black heritage. Plessy did not consider himself black, but Louisiana did and therefore made him sit in the segregated area for blacks. Plessy did not agree and challenged the Jim Crow laws by breaking the law intentionally and sitting in an area of the train that Louisiana law said he was prohibited to sit in, in which case caused him to be arrested and charged with criminal violation of the state law. What issues is the court addressing? What is the legal problem? At the time, the legal issues the court is addressing, were the 13th Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment that addressed...
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...Plessy v. Ferguson In 1896 the United States Supreme Court upheld a case that changed segregation. The Plessy v. Ferguson case declared that separate facilities for blacks and whites were constitutional as long as they were equal. This court case set the “Separate but Equal” laws. After this court case was unjustified the black communities became outraged. In 1892 a man named Homer Plessy was taking a train to from New Orleans, LA to Covington, LA. Plessy could easily pass for white but he was considered black by the law. Plessy decided that he was going to sit in the white car instead of the black car. He identified himself as a black male and was arrested. Plessy was arrested for violating and 1890 Louisiana statue. The statue provided...
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...In 1890, New Orleans Society was a complete mess. They enforced segregation and pretty much broke the laws of the constitution. The issues with the Plessy v. Ferguson case was that the state of Louisiana passed the Separate Car Act which enforced a law that states, “that all railway companies carrying passengers in their coaches in this state, shall provide equal but separate accommodations for the white, and colored races, by providing two or more passenger coaches for each passenger train, or by dividing the passenger coaches by a partition so as to secure separate accommodations…” In disagreement, Plessy found a way to fight on the Act. On June 7, 1892, the defendant purchased a first class ticket from New Orleans to Covington, Louisiana....
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...On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared all slaves in rebellious states free. Although people of color were free, they still were not treated equally with whites. Slaves had a difficult time integrating into society after being freed. In 1868 the Fourteenth Amendment was introduced to ensure equal protection for citizens and to help issues former slaves were having trouble entering society. State and local governments could require that facilities be separated by race as long as they were equal. Facilities were rarely equal and whites had some facilities that blacks didn't. This created controversy and led to the “separate, but equal” clause. Homer Plessy was one man who would challenge...
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...Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) Facts: On June 7, 1892 Homer Plessy, a biracial man from Louisiana attempted to sit in a first class all-white railroad car. After refusing to remove himself to the black passenger car, Plessy was arrested. Plessy had violated Louisiana’s Separate Cars Act; which required railroad companies to provide separate, but equal accommodations for its Black and White passengers. Procedural History: In the case of Homer Adolph Plessy v. The State of Louisiana, U.S. District Court, Judge John H. Ferguson dismissed his contention that the act was unconstitutional. Ferguson maintained that Louisiana had the right to regulate railroad companies while they operated within state boundaries....
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...Plessy v. Ferguson: To begin you must understand the significance of the court case Plessy vs. Ferguson in order to see the true importance of it. In 1890, Louisiana passed an act named the Separate Car Act. The law stated that all rail companies carrying passengers in Louisiana had to have separate but equal seating arrangements for white and non-white passengers. Also under this law declared that those who violated the act were to pay a fine or spend 20 days in jail. People especially blacks at the time felt that this act was unfair and unconstitutional. So one day a name by the name of Homer Plessy who was one-eighth black bought a first class ticket and boarded an all-white car. The rail company knew what was going to happen so upon his...
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...Board of Education Brown v. Board of education case took place in 1954. It is one of the most important cases in the American history of racial prejudice. The U.S. Supreme Court recognized separate schools for blacks and whites unconstitutional. This decision became an important event of struggle against racial segregation in the United States. The Brown case proved that there is no way a separation on the base of race to be in a democratic society. Brown v. Board of education is not a case just about education and children, it is a case of everybody being equal. Brown v. Board of Education was a beginning for American people to understand that separate but equal is not the same. The Brown case revealed this. It was the reason why blacks and whites do not have separate accomodations any more. Separate and equal does not exist any more, Brown v. Board of eduacation made everyone equal. The first case in which African American challenged the doctrine of separate but equal in the United States public education system was in Boston Massachusetts in 1849. Prior to Brown v. Board (1954), from 1881 to 1949 there were eleven cases initiated to try an integrate schools in Kansas. The schools that the African American children attended were not equal to their white counterparts. Most of the time the African American students had to travel farther than white students to get to their schools. The schools for African Americans were run down with-of-date text...
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...Case Title: Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) Plaintiff: Homer Adolph Plessy (man of mixed race) Defendant: John Howard Ferguson (louisiana judge) The Law: This case involves racial segregation laws and was the first major case to look into the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment’s (1868) equal-protection clause. The equal-protection clause prohibits the states from denying “equal protection of the laws” to any person within their jurisdictions. It also allowed for laws to be implemented that would achieve racial segregation by means of separate and supposedly equal facilities and services. The Facts of the Case: In 1891, 5 years before this case, a group in New Orleans created the Citizens’ Committee to Test the Constitutionality of the Separate Car Law. Homer Plessy purchased a railroad ticket for travel within Louisiana and decided to sit in a car reserved for white passengers only. Although Plessy appeared white he was one-eighth African American, meaning he should have been sitting...
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...Supreme Court ruled no to all of these questions. In 1896, the Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson ruled “separate but equal” is constitutional. These decisions have had a significant impact on the nation. The years leading up to the Dred Scott v. Sanford case consisted of tensions over the issue of slavery and slave rights. There are many compromises and documents established that helped to prevent the extension of slavery. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 was one of the first of many documents that banned slavery in the territories. It was established to allow for the administering of new territories and forbade the expansion of slavery into...
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