Plessy v. Ferguson

Background:

The Thirteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, proposed in 1864 and Ratified in 1865, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except for those duly convicted of a crime. The Fourteenth Amendment, proposed in 1866 and ratified in 1868, defines birthright citizenship, guarantees equal protection under the law, and ensures due process against state violations. These amendments were made after the American Civil War, and were intended to expand the rights of formerly enslaved people. Despite this, “Jim Crow Laws” were passed in many Southern states and enforced segregation by race. Later, the state of Louisiana passed the Separate Car Act of 1890, meaning there had to be separate railroad cars for Black and White passengers. 

The Case:

In 1892, the Comite des Citoyens (Committee of Citizens), a New Orleans civil rights activist group, recruited a man named Homer Plessy. Plessy, who was seven eighths Caucasian and one eighth Black, agreed to participate in a test for the activist group to challenge the Separate Car Act. Under Louisiana law, Plessy was considered Black. In hopes to get the act repealed, the group asked Plessy to sit in a “whites only” train car within Louisiana. Plessy refused to leave the whites only car when told, and was arrested. Judge John H. Ferguson ruled against Plessy in a lower court, to which Plessy responded by suing him and eventually bringing the case to the Supreme Court to challenge the Law.

Debates from Each Side:

Plessy’s lawyers argued that the segregation of railroad cars under the Separate Cars Act, violated the 13th and 14th Amendments. Plessy debated that the forced separation of Black citizens highlighted and promoted inferiority, therefore denying equal rights. On the contrary, Ferguson, the Louisiana state judge presiding over the lower court criminal case against Plessy argued that Louisiana had the right to regulate railroad companies and enforce segregation as long as they operated within state boundaries.

Verdict:

The Supreme Court ruled against Plessy in a 7-1 vote claiming segregation was constitutional so long as the separate facilities were considered equal. This created the phrase applied to segregation within the U.S. of "separate but equal”. The Court claimed the act of segregation alone did not imply inequality, acting as a work around to what these laws truly stood for. John Marshal Harlan, the lone dissenter in this case, wrote one of the most famous dissents in Supreme Court history, arguing the Constitution is “color-blind” in function, and should serve all American citizens the same. He voiced that the U.S. should not tolerate a form of classes among citizens.

Legacy:

This case stood as a landmark case, implementing the idea of "separate but equal” into society. Despite the concept, equality rarely occurred, leading to further division between citizens. This case led to the later Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, in which Plessy v. Ferguson was used as precedent. When the court ruled in favor of Brown, the case of Plessy v. Ferguson was repealed. Even though this case promoted segregation and division, its repeal also had a massive impact on society, making efforts towards further equality between all citizens. This case goes to show that the Supreme Court can, and has, legitimized injustice, and how dissents such as that of Justice Harlan’s can shape the future.