SOL List | List of Resources for VUS.13

VUS.13a.1

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas(1954): Opinion of the Court
(Cornell University Law School: "Legal Information Institute")

Description
This resource is part of a hypertext version of the landmark decision ending school segregation. It is presented in a format that is both word-searchable and linked to other documents of interest. Written by Chief Justice Earl Warren, this "Opinion of the Court" offers students a good opportunity to examine the actual language and reasoning behind this extremely significant court decision.
Teaching Tips

"Do Now" Suggestions

  1. The teacher can provide students with the following excerpt from the opinion:

    In the Virginia case, Davis v. County School Board, the plaintiffs are Negro children of high school age residing in Prince Edward County. They brought this action in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to enjoin enforcement of provisions in the state constitution and statutory code which require the segregation of Negroes and whites in public schools. Va.Const., § 140; Va.Code § 22-221 (1950). The three-judge District Court, convened under 28 U.S.C. §§ 2281 and 2284, denied the requested relief. The court found the Negro school inferior in physical plant, curricula, and transportation, and ordered the defendants forthwith to provide substantially equal curricula and transportation and to "proceed with all reasonable diligence and dispatch to remove" the inequality in physical plant. But, as in the South Carolina case, the court sustained the validity of the contested provisions and denied the plaintiffs admission to the white schools during the equalization program. 103 F.Supp. 337. The case is here on direct appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1253.

  2. The students can respond to the following questions in a journal entry or a think-pair-share:

    • How did Virginia fit into the Brown v. Board of Education case?
    • What were the complaints of the African-American students in Virginia?

Suggestions for Using this Resource as Part of a Lesson

  1. In the opinion in paragraph 6, there is a reference to the "Equalization Cases," in which the NAACP provided lawyers to argue for equality in African-American graduate schools. There is a link for each case (Missouri ex rel. Gaines v. Canada, Sipuel v. Oklahoma, Sweatt v. Painter, McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents), which give the Court's ruling. Students could work in groups of 4 to research the cases and come up with the following information:

    • Who were the players involved in this case?
    • What was the NAACP hoping to gain from the case?
    • What was the opinion of the Court?

  2. After the students grasp the cases above, they can examine the Brown v. Board of Education opinion with the same research questions. Ultimately, the class can discuss the differences between the equalization cases and Brown (desegregation, not equalization). The idea is for students to understand how the mission of the NAACP changed with Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.