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Facts about the
Plessy vs. Ferguson case for kids: Facts Sheet for Kids
Interesting facts about the Plessy vs. Ferguson case are
detailed below. The history of the Plessy vs. Ferguson case is told in a
fast, fun sequence consisting of a series of interesting, short facts
providing a simple method of relating the
history of the Plessy vs. Ferguson case,
and its significance to racial segregation, for kids, schools and homework projects.
1896
Plessy vs. Ferguson Case:
Facts Sheet for Kids
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 1:
In 1890 the Louisiana State
Legislature passed the Separate Car Act, a law that
required "equal, but separate" train car accommodations
for Black and White people.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
2: The Separate Car Act was one of the
'Jim
Crow Laws' enacted by Southern states, beginning in
the 1880s, that legalized segregation between Black
Americans and White Americans
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
3: The 'Jim Crow Laws' had replaced the
infamous
Black Codes, which had restricted the civil rights
and civil liberties of freed slaves with no pretense of
equality during the Reconstruction Era.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
4: The phrase "Separate but equal" was a
legal doctrine in U. S. constitutional law that
justified and permitted racial segregation.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
5: The 14th Amendment to the
Constitution
asserted that there were equal protection rights of all
US citizens, including those that were part of a
minority group
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
6: Although the Constitutional doctrine
required equality, the facilities offered to
African-Americans were almost always of lower quality
than those offered to white Americans
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
7: In 1891 a group of activists in New
Orleans established a black civil rights organization
called the 'Citizens Committee' to test whether the
Separate Car Law with its "Separate but equal"
statement was constitutional.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
8: A 30-year-old shoemaker and activist
called Homer Adolf Plessy agreed to test the law.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
9: Who was Homer Adolf Plessy? Homer
Plessy (1862 – 1925) was a a light-skinned 'Creole of
Color', a term used to refer to black people in New
Orleans of French, Spanish, and Caribbean descent. He
described himself as "seven-eighths Caucasian and
one-eighth African blood" and he could easily pass a
white.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
10: On June 7, 1892 Homer Plessy bought a
first-class ticket to travel interstate from New Orleans
to Covington on the East Louisiana Railroad.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
11: He boarded the "white carriage" and
told the conductor that he was black. The conductor told
him to move to the appropriate car, which he refused to
do. He stated that he was an American citizen, had paid
for a first-class ticket, and that he intended to ride
in the first-class car. The conductor stopped the train
and alerted the police.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
12: Detective Christopher Cain boarded
the train and arrested Homer who was forced off the
train and taken to jail
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
13: The next day, June 8, 1892, he
appeared in criminal court before Judge John Howard
Ferguson (1838 - 1915) to answer charges of violating
the Separate Car Act.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
14: Judge John Howard Ferguson ruled that
Louisiana was free to regulate such actions and that
Homer Plessy was guilty as charged
Continued...
1896
Plessy vs. Ferguson Case:
Facts Sheet for Kids
Facts about the
Plessy vs. Ferguson case: Facts Sheet for Kids
Interesting facts about the Plessy vs. Ferguson case and the issues
of racial discrimination and Black Segregation are
detailed below. The history of the Plessy vs. Ferguson case is told in a
fast, fun sequence consisting of a series of interesting, brief facts
providing a simple method of relating the
history of the Plessy vs. Ferguson case,
and its significance to racial discrimination and segregation, for kids, schools and homework projects.
1896
Plessy vs. Ferguson Case:
Facts Sheet for Kids
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 15:
Homer Plessy contended that the
Separate Car Act law violated the 13th Amendment
(abolishing slavery) and 14th Amendment (equal
protection of the laws) and petitioned a writ of
prohibition to the Louisiana state Supreme Court against
Judge Ferguson.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 16:
The Plessy vs. Ferguson case was
upheld by the Louisiana state Supreme Court and an
appeal was made to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 17:
The Supreme Court ruling that
followed on May 18, 1896, bore the names of Plessy and
Ferguson (Plessy v. Ferguson)
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 18:
The Supreme Court decision upheld the
Separate Car Act, holding that the law violated neither
the 13th Amendment because it did not re-impose slavery,
nor the 14th Amendment, because it dealt with political
and not social equality
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 19:
Justice Henry Billings Brown (1836 -
1913), an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the
United States from 1891 - 1906, expressed his opinion of
the case stating that "separate but equal" laws did not
imply the inferiority of one race to another.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
20: Justice John Marshall Harlan (1833 -
1911) was the lone dissenter in the case, advocating for
equality among those of different races and for a
color-blind Constitution.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
21: After the Supreme Court decision,
Homer Plessy reported to the court of Judge Ferguson to
answer the charge of violating the Separate Car Act. He
changed his plea to guilty and paid the $25 fine.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
22: The impact of the Supreme Court
decision was highly significant as it provided the
constitutional sanction for the adoption throughout the
South of a comprehensive series of Jim Crow laws and
policies fought by the
Niagara
Movement and the
NAACP.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact
23:
Private organizations and businesses, such as hotels,
theaters, and railroads, were free to practice
Racial Segregation.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case Fact 24:
In 1954, the Supreme Court justices, in
Brown vs Board of Education
of Topeka, Kansas case reversed the decision
made in the Plessy vs. Ferguson case in that the
decision that legally sanctioned racial segregation was
inherently unequal and a violation of the 14th
Amendment.
1896
Plessy vs. Ferguson Case:
Facts Sheet for Kids DISCLAIMER:
This website and any information contained herein
are intended for educational and informational
purposes only and should not be construed as legal
advice. Seek competent legal counsel from a lawyer
for advice on any legal matter.
Black
History for kids: Important People and Events
For visitors interested in African American History
refer to
Black History - People and Events.
A useful resource for
teachers, kids, schools and colleges undertaking
projects for the Black History Month.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case for kids - President Grover Cleveland Video
The article on the Plessy vs. Ferguson case provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office
- for additional facts refer to the
Segregation History Timeline
and the
NAACP. The following
Grover Cleveland video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 22nd and 24th President of the
United States whose presidencies spanned from March 4, 1885 to March 4, 1889
and from March 4, 1893 - March 4,1897.
Plessy vs. Ferguson case
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Interesting Facts about Plessy vs. Ferguson case for kids and schools
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Summary of the Plessy vs. Ferguson case in US history
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The Plessy vs. Ferguson case, a major
event in US history
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Racial Segregation and the
Plessy vs. Ferguson case
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Fast, facts on Plessy vs. Ferguson case
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History, facts and information on this infamous 'Jim
Crow Law'
● The Supreme Court
decision on the
Plessy vs. Ferguson case for schools,
homework, kids and children |
