Brown v. Board of Education – The Struggle for Equality
Matthew Mills
Mahomet Seymour Junior High School
Spring 2013
Farm Security Administration –
Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)
Collins, Marjory, 1912-1985, photographer 1942 Mar.
The Brown v. Board of education ruling on May 17, 1954, U.S. Supreme Court
Justice Earl Warren delivered the unanimous ruling in the landmark civil rights
case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. State-sanctioned segregation of
public schools was a violation of the 14th Amendment and was therefore
unconstitutional. This historic decision marked the end of the "separate but equal"
precedent set by the Supreme Court nearly 60 years earlier and served as a catalyst for the
expanding civil rights movement during the decade of the 1950s.
This learning activity explores the events that led up to the Brown v. Board of
Education ruling and the impact it had on the civil rights movement. Students will
analyze several primary sources to get an overall understanding of the importance of the
case in relation to African Americans achieving civil rights.
Overview/ Materials/LOC Resources/Standards/ Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension
Overview
Objectives
Recommended time frame
Grade level
Curriculum fit
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Students will:
 Integrate multiple resources to understand the
significance of the Brown v. Board of Education of
Topeka, Kansas case.
 Explain the effect the landmark case had on the
Civil Rights Movement.
 List observations from photos.
 Create a timeline of events from the Civil Rights
Movement.
 Analyze the Landmark Supreme Court Case Plessey
v. Ferguson 1896.
 Analyze the Landmark Supreme Court Case Brown
v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas.
5 class periods
Upper Middle School (8th Grade)
Social Studies
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Materials
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Copies of segregated African American schools
from resource table:
 Marjory Collins. Reading lesson in African
American elementary school in Washington,
D.C.
 African American public school in Louisa,
Virginia, 1935
 Veazy, Greene County, Georgia. The oneteacher Negro school in Veazy, south of
Greensboro.
Copies of Plessy v. Ferguson case brief.
Copies of Brown v. Board of Education case brief.
Copies of marches/demonstrations during Civil
Rights Movement from resource table:
 People marching with signs to protest
segregation in education at the college and
secondary levels.
 African American students arriving at Little
Rock Central High School.
 Rosa Parks being fingerprinted.
 Ministers protesting outside Woolworths.
 Selma March.
Copies of Photo Analysis Worksheet.
Copies of Civil Rights Timeline.
Illinois Learning Standards/Common Core
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ILS-Social Studies
GOAL 16: Understand events, trends, individuals
and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the
United States and other nations.
 16.A Apply the skills of historical analysis and
interpretation.
 16.A.3b Make inferences about historical events
and eras using historical maps and other
historical sources.
 16.A.3c Identify the differences between
historical fact and interpretation.
 16.B Understand the development of significant
political events.
 16.B.3c (US) Describe the way the Constitution
has changed over time as a result of amendments
and Supreme Court decisions.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Procedures
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Day One:
 The students will read and complete the case brief
for the Plessy v. Ferguson case.
 The students will look at primary source
photographs of segregated facilities in the South.
 Discuss their findings for each picture and talk about
Jim Crow laws in southern states after the Plessy v.
Ferguson ruling.
Day Two:
 The students will look at primary source
photographs of African American schools before
Brown v. Board of Education.
 The students will complete the document analysis
worksheet for each picture.
 Discuss their findings for each picture and ask how
they thought white schools were different during this
time.
Day Three:
 The students will read and complete the case brief
for Brown v. Board of Education case.
 Discuss their findings and talk about the significance
of the Supreme Court ruling for challenging other
forms of segregation.
Day Four:
 The students will look at primary source
photographs of Civil Rights groups protesting other
forms of segregation after the Brown v. Board of
Education ruling.
 The students will complete the Analyzing Primary
Source Worksheet for each.
 Discuss findings from the photographs and the focus
of the Civil Rights Movement after Brown v. Board
of Education.
Day Five:
 Students will complete the Civil Rights Timeline
Assignment using the website provided.
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/civilrights/crexhibit.html
 The students will select 10 events for the timeline
and identify the significance of the event.
 The students will be evaluated using the rubric
below.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Evaluation
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Extension
Photograph Analysis Worksheets will be collected
and given a participation grade.
The Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of
Education case briefs will be graded for content base
on student responses to the questions.
The Civil Rights Timeline will be graded for content
and grammar.
Extension activity will be graded for students who
complete the assignment.
The students will also have an assessment at the end
of the Civil Rights Movement Unit.
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
Students will be given the option of researching a
Civil Rights figure for an extension activity. This
will be used if a student finishes the timeline early
or needs an enrichment activity.
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Primary Resources from the Library of Congress
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Image
Description
Man drinking at
“colored” water fountain
in the street car terminal,
Oklahoma City.
Citation
Library of Congress, Prints
& Photographs Division,
FSA-OWI Collection,
Reproduction number: LCDIG-fsa-8a26761 DLC
(digital file from original
neg.)
URL
http://www.loc.gov/exhibi
ts/civilrights/images/cr000
5s.jpg
Marjory Collins. Reading
lesson in African
American elementary
school in Washington,
D.C.
Farm Security
Administration - Office of
War Information
Photograph Collection
(Library of Congress)
Collins, Marjory, 19121985, photographer
1942 Mar.
http://www.loc.gov/pictur
es/item/owi2001003177/P
P/
African American public
school in Louisa,
Virginia, 1935
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540
USAVisual Materials from
the National Association
for the Advancement of
Colored People Records
1935
Library of Congress, Prints
& Photographs Division,
FSA-OWI Collection,
Reproduction number: LCUSF34-046248-D DLC
(b&w film neg.)
http://www.loc.gov/pictur
es/item/2005693014/
J.H. Lawson, Houston,
Texas, 1947.
Visual Materials from the
National Association for
the Advancement of
Colored People Records,
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
http://www.loc.gov/pi
ctures/item/96515743/
Veazy, Greene County,
Georgia. The one-teacher
Negro school in Veazy,
south of Greensboro.
People marching with
signs to protest
segregation in education
at the college and
secondary levels
http://memory.loc.gov/cgibin/query/r?ammem/fsaall
:@filreq(@field(NUMBE
R+@band(fsa+8a26761))
+@field(COLLID+fsa))
http://memory.loc.gov/ser
vice/pnp/fsa/8c07000/8c0
7400/8c07419r.jpg
http://memory.loc.gov/cgibin/query/r?ammem/fsaall
:@field(NUMBER+@ban
d(fsa+8c07419))
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
African American
students arriving at
Central High School,
Little Rock, Arkansas, in
U.S. Army car
Woman fingerprinted.
Mrs. Rosa Parks, Negro
seamstress, whose refusal
to move to the back of a
bus touched off the bus
boycott in Montgomery,
Ala.
Washington, D.C. 20540
Reproduction number: LCUSZ62-116817 (b&w film
copy neg.)
Keating, Bern. 1947
U.S. News & World Report
Magazine Collection.
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540
USA Reproduction
Number: LC-DIG-ppmsc00182 (digital file from
original)
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/p
p.print
Associated Press photo.
New York World-Telegram
& Sun Collection. 1956.
Exhibited: With an Even
Hand: Brown v. Board of
Education at Fifty Years,
Durham Western Heritage
Museum, Omaha,
Nebraska, 2005-2006.
Protest by ministers
Associated Press photo.
New York World-Telegram
and the Sun Newspaper
Photograph Collection
April 14, 1960.
Exhibited: Voices of Civil
Rights, Library of Congress,
Washington, D.C., 2005
Participants marching in
Peter Pettus.1965.
the civil rights march
Exhibited: Voices of Civil
from Selma to
Rights, Library of
Montgomery, Alabama in Congress, Washington,
1965.
D.C., 2005.
Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C. 20540
USA. Reproduction
Number: LC-DIG-ppmsca08102 (digital file from
original
http://www.loc.gov/exhibi
ts/civilrights/images/cr001
3s.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pi
ctures/item/98502283/
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/
cph.3c09643
http://www.loc.gov/pi
ctures/item/94500293/
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/
ppmsca.08096
http://www.loc.gov/pi
ctures/item/95514178/
http://www.loc.gov/exhibi
ts/civilrights/images/cr003
0s.jpg
http://www.loc.gov/pi
ctures/item/20036753
45/
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Rubric
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Timeline : Civil Rights Timeline
Teacher Name: Mr. Mills
Student Name:
________________________________________
CATEGORY
Dates
4
An accurate,
complete date has
been included for
each event.
3
An accurate,
complete date has
been included for
almost every
event.
2
An accurate date
has been included
for almost every
event.
1
Dates are
inaccurate and/or
missing for several
events.
Content/Facts
Facts were
accurate for all
events reported on
the timeline.
Facts were
accurate for almost
all events reported
on the timeline.
Facts were
accurate for most
(~75%) of the
events reported on
the timeline.
Facts were often
inaccurate for
events reported on
the timeline.
Readability
The overall
appearance of the
timeline is pleasing
and easy to read.
The overall
appearance of the
timeline is
somewhat pleasing
and easy to read.
The timeline is
relatively readable.
The timeline is
difficult to read.
Spelling and
Capitalization
Spelling and
capitalization were
checked by
another student
and are correct
throughout.
Spelling and
capitalization were
checked by
another student
and were mostly
correct .
Spelling and
capitalization were
mostly correct, but
were not checked
by another
student.
There were many
spelling and
capitalization
errors.
Total Score = ____________X2=______________/32 Points
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
HANDOUTS
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Name_____________________Class__________
Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
Background Summary and Questions
In Topeka, Kansas in the 1950s, schools were segregated by race. Each day, Linda Brown and her sister, Terry Lynn, had to
walk through a dangerous railroad switchyard to get to the bus stop for the ride to their all-black elementary school. There was a
school closer to the Brown's house, but it was only for white students
Topeka was not the only town to experience segregation. Segregation in schools and other public places was common
throughout the South and elsewhere. This segregation based on race was legal because of a landmark Supreme Court case
called Plessy v. Ferguson, which was decided in 1896. In that case, the Court said that as long as segregated facilities were
equal in quality segregation did not violate the Constitution.
However, the Brown's disagreed. Linda Brown and her family believed that the segregated school system did violate the
Constitution. In particular, they believed that the system violated the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteeing that people will be
treated equally under the law.
No State shall . . . deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
—Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) helped the Browns. Thurgood
Marshall was the attorney who argued the case for the Browns. He would later become a Supreme Court
justice.
The case was first heard in a federal district court, the lowest court in the federal system. The federal district court decided that
segregation in public education was harmful to black children. However, the court said that the all-black schools were equal to
the all-white schools because the buildings, transportation, curricula, and educational qualifications of the teachers were similar;
therefore the segregation was legal.
The Browns, however, believed that even if the facilities were similar, segregated schools could never be equal to one another.
They appealed their case to the Supreme Court of the United States. The Court combined the Brown's case with other cases
from South Carolina, Virginia, and Delaware. The ruling in the Brown v. Board of Education case came in 1954.
(Answer questions on back)
Questions to Consider:
1. What does it mean to have segregated schools?
2. What right does the Fourteenth Amendment give citizens?
3. How did the case of Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) affect segregation?
4.
Do you think the separate schools in Topeka were equal? How were they different?
5. It is important for this case to determine what "equal" means. What do you think equality means to the Browns? What do
you think equality means to the Board of Education of Topeka?
Name_______________________Class________
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
Background Summary and Questions
In 1890, Louisiana passed a statute called the "Separate Car Act", which stated "that all railway companies carrying passengers
in their coaches in this state, shall provide equal but separate accommodations for the white, and colored races, by providing
two or more passenger coaches for each passenger train, or by dividing the passenger coaches by a partition so as to secure
separate accommodations. . . . " The penalty for sitting in the wrong compartment was a fine of $25 or 20 days in jail.
The Plessy case was carefully orchestrated by both the Citizens' Committee to Test the Constitutionality of the Separate Car
Act, a group of blacks who raised $3000 to challenge the Act, and the East Louisiana Railroad Company, which sought to
terminate the Act largely for monetary reasons. They chose a 30-year-old shoemaker named Homer Plessy, a citizen of the
United States who was one-eighth black and a resident of the state of Louisiana. On June 7, 1892, Plessy purchased a firstclass passage from New Orleans to Covington, Louisiana and sat in the railroad car designated for whites only. The railroad
officials, following through on the arrangement, arrested Plessy and charged him with violating the Separate Car Act. Well
known advocate for black rights Albion Tourgee, a white lawyer, agreed to argue the case without compensation.
In the criminal district court for the parish of Orleans, Plessy argued that the Separate Car Act violated the Thirteenth and
Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution.
Thirteenth Amendment
Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly
convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Fourteenth Amendment
Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are citizens of the United
States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or
immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due
process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
John Howard Ferguson was the judge presiding over Plessy's criminal case in the district court. He had previously declared the
Separate Car Act "unconstitutional on trains that traveled through several states." However, in Plessy's case he decided that the
state could choose to regulate railroad companies that operated solely within the state of Louisiana. Therefore, Ferguson found
Plessy guilty and declared the Separate Car Act constitutional.
Plessy appealed the case to the Louisiana State Supreme Court, which affirmed the decision that the Louisiana law as
constitutional. Plessy petitioned for a writ of error from the Supreme Court of the United States. Judge John Howard Ferguson
was named in the case brought before the United States Supreme Court (Plessy v. Ferguson) because he had been named in
the petition to the Louisiana Supreme Court and not because he was a party to the initial lawsuit.
Questions to Consider:
1. What law did Homer Plessy violate? How did Plessy violate this law?
2. What rights do the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution provide?
3. If you were Plessy's lawyer, how would you justify your claim that the "Separate Car Act" violates the Thirteenth and
Fourteenth amendments?
4. Is it possible for two races to remain separated while striving for equality? Are separation and equality compatible? Why
or why not?
5. Can you think of an example or situation where separation does not mean inequality?
Name______________________Class_________
Civil Rights Timeline (20 Points)
You will construct a timeline of major events from the struggle for African American Civil Rights. Use the webpage
below to choose at least ten events for your timeline. You will put the date of the event and a brief description on the
timeline. Next, for each event explain the importance to the overall Civil Rights Movement on the second page.
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/civilrights/cr-exhibit.html
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Extra Events: