may 18, 1896 - PLESSY VS. FERGUSON
Description:
The Court held that the state law of having segregated train cars was constitutional. In an opinion authored by Justice Henry Billings Brown, the majority upheld state-imposed racial segregation. Justice Brown conceded that the 14th Amendment intended to establish absolute equality for the races before the law, but held that separate treatment did not imply the inferiority of African Americans. Separate but equal decision.Added to timeline:
Date:
may 18, 1896
Now
~ 129 years ago