Brown v. Board of Education

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Brown vs. Board of Education was ruling of the Supreme Court in 1945 that in considered landmark in that it declared the establishment of separate public schools for black and white students inherently unequal. Despite the profundity of that statement, not everyone excepted the ruling. So for many African Americans the case did nothing to restore the equality in all aspects of society.

There was a PBS documentary on it not too long ago.

The daughter, Linda Brown, was only three at the time. She recollects on the experience:

"well. like I say we lived in an integrated neighborhood and I had all of these playmates of different nationalities. And so when I found out that day that I might be able to go to their school, I was just thrilled, you know. And I remember walking over to Sumner school with my dad that day and going up the steps of the school and the school looked so big to a smaller child. And I remember going inside and my dad spoke with someone and then he went into the inner office with the principal and they left me out ... to sit outside with the secretary. And while he was in the inner office, I could hear voices and hear his voice raised, you know, as the conversation went on. And then he immediately came out of the office, took me by the hand and we walked home from the school. I just couldn't understand what was happening because I was so sure that I was going to go to school with Mona and Guinevere, Wanda, and all of my playmates"