Sunday, April 24, 2011

Plessy v. Ferguson

In 1890, Plessy got on a train in  Lousiana, in the white section.  He was ordered to leave the section, however, he refused to leave.  He was found guilty in state court for his actions.  He appealed to the Supreme Court, claiming that what happened went against the 14th Amendment.  The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the state, saying that Plessy's one fallacy is that segregation doesn't make things unequal.  The 14th Amendment was not quite on his favor.
Although the Supreme Court somewhat acknowledged the unreasonable laws in the constitution, and they upheld it, I think they had this one wrong.  They may have made the constitutionally correct action, however, they should have been the first progressives to say that seperate but equal isn't always equal.  They should have challenged the constitution, rather than simply use it.

Today, many people disagree with this ruling from the Supreme Court.  Later, the
Supreme Court itself would challenge seperate but equal.  This ruling does not have a significant effect on today's society, since it has no power.  It is a reminder of how backwards we were back then, however.

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