1. Plessy V. Ferguson 210 163 U.S. 537 Cassidy Osborne

2. Plaintiff and Defendant  Plaintiff which is the one accused of the crime is Homer Plessy  Defendant which is the one trying to convict the guilty is John Ferguson

3. Background:  Homer Plessy was arrested for sitting in the white section of the train  Plessy said that he was a part of both races and when he saw an available seat, he sat in it  Plessy refused to give up his seat when the driver told him to, so Louisiana police decided to arrest him.  He was the “Creole of Color”, which was used to describe a black person who traced back ancestors to French and Spanish.  Plessy said that since he was seven eights white that he deserved every freedom and right that the people of the white race got.  The state of Louisiana passed the “separate care act”, which made the separation of whites and blacks legal.

4. More Background  When the separate care act was passed civil rights group of blacks wanted to challenge the law.  Plessy was a member of the civil rights group and he deliberately sat in the white section of the train.  He wanted to make a difference in the state saying that everyone needed to be treated equally no matter their race.

5. Point of Law  Plessy’s lawyer argued that the separate care act went against the thirteenth and fourteenth amendments  These amendments wanted every person to be treated equally no matter their race.  When Plessy went to general district court case hearing he was found guilty because he violated an act of the General Assembly of the State.  He then filed a petition saying that the segregation law went against the Equal Protection Clause (the fourteenth amendment).

6. 13 th and 14 th Amendment  This amendment stated that no person should be deprived of their life, liberty, or property because of their race.  It said every United States citizen should get the equal amount of rights.  When the court found Plessy guilty the petitioner said that the information filed against him was null and void.  This was because it conflicted with the Constitution. The petitioner then filed a plea saying that arresting Plessy was unconstitutional.

7. Supreme Court Decision:  The Supreme Court said that it did not see where it went against the fourteenth or thirteenth amendment.  The court said that the state was not treating the black race any differently than the white.  They were just doing what the law required them to do, which is to keep the races in separate facilities.  In every state in America the white facilities were better than the ones the blacks had to use.  Plessy was forced to plead guilty to this crime and he had to pay a small fee.  The facilities remained separated and nothing changed.

8. Decision Continued:  Brown said the fourteenth amendment was written to enforce the equality of races before the law.  The judge said that the fourteenth amendment was only concerned with the legal part and not the social equality of the races.  They said that this decision kept public peace  The court said that the constitution states that must provide separate sections of the train for the white and black people.  It also states that two or more coaches are required on each train.

9. Historical Impact:  The decision of the Supreme Court gave states permission to separate blacks and whites from everything.  This decision remained in effect until the Brown v. Board of Education court case came along.  Even though the state required each school board to provide equal schoolhouses and other matters pertaining to the children’s education.  The school board provided two schoolhouses for white people and they had the sufficient funds in order educate all the white children in the county.  It only provided funding for half of the children in the black community.  The Supreme Court heard this case and ruled to desegregate the schools and treat each race equally.

10. Works Cited  http://www.memrise.com/s3_proxy/?f=uploads/mems/3121575000130426092 449.gif  http://www-tc.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/antebellum/images/plessy.jpg  https://www.awesomestories.com/images/user/ea716791ee75c7800e85a69b 37dcc067.jpg