Date: ______
Topic: The Jim Crow Laws & Plessy v. Ferguson
Aim: How did the ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson impact the rights of African
Americans?
Do Now: Match the term with the definition.
Jim Crow Laws
- Based on the reading above, explain the Jim Crow Laws
Laws which separate different racial groups in public places, this is called segregation.
Plessy v. Ferguson
On June 7, 1892, 30-year-old Homer Plessy was jailed for sitting in the "White" car of the East Louisiana Railroad. Plessy could easily pass for white but under Louisiana law (Plessy was in fact seven-eighths white and one-eighth black), he was considered black despite his light complexion and therefore required to sit in the "Colored" car. He was a Creole of Color, a term used to refer to black persons in New Orleans who traced some of their ancestors to the French, Spanish, and Caribbean settlers of Louisiana before it became part of the United States.
When Louisiana passed the Separate Car Act (Jim Crow Laws), legally segregating trains in 1892, a black civil rights organization decided to challenge the law in the courts. Plessy deliberately sat in the white section and identified himself as black. He did this because he felt entitled to every right and privilege given to white citizens. When the conductor asked him to move he refused so he was forcibly removed by the police. Plessy's lawyer argued that the Separate Car Act (Jim Crow Laws) violated a clause in the 14th Amendmentthat forbids the states to make laws depriving citizens of their “privileges or immunities”. According to this section of the 14th Amendment all citizens should be treated equally. When the Louisiana court upheld the law Plessy appealed to the US Supreme Court.
Directions: Answer the following questions in complete sentences.
1)What law did Homer Plessy violate?
Jim Crow Laws
2)How did Plessy violate this law?
He sat in the white section on the train.
3)Plessy argues that state laws (Jim Crow Laws) which segregate people by race on railway coaches are a violation of the 14thAmendment to the Constitution, which guarantees “equal protection of the laws and equal opportunities or privileges”.
4)Plessy believes that by making African Americans ride in separate cars they are not equal to whites. He believes that the Jim Crow Laws make African Americans feel inferior to whites. He believes that the 14th Amendment states that all citizens should be treated equally.
The state of Louisiana says that Plessy’s argument is wrong because the two facilities might be separate but the conditions are the same so African Americans & whites have the same privileges and opportunities and are being treated equally under the law.
Who do you agree with? Explain.
______
Plessy V. Ferguson Ruling
Make a prediction . . . .How do you think the Supreme Court ruled?
Directions: Put a check next to the decision you think the Supreme Court will make.
______Do you think they sided with Homer Plessy and outlawed the Jim Crow laws and
segregation
OR
______Do you think they supported the state of Louisiana and said the Jim Crow Laws are
constitutional
The Supreme Courts Verdict
In 1896, the Supreme Court of the United States heard the case and ruled 7-1 that the Louisiana segregation law was constitutional. "The Plessy decision set the precedent that "separate" facilities for blacks and whites were constitutional as long as they were "equal."
Justice Henry Brown summarized the decision by saying “the purpose of the Fourteenth Amendment was to enforce the equality of the two races before the law, which means providing both races with the same opportunities, but it is not intended to enforce social equality. Prejudice cannot be overcome by laws, instead it must be the result of the appreciation of each other’s merits and it must be voluntary.”
Justice John Harlan, the one justice who voted in favor of Plessy, saw the terrible consequences of the decision. "Our Constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens. In respect of civil rights, all citizens are equal before the law. ... The present decision, will not only lead to colored citizens losing their rights, but will encourage the belief that it is possible for the states to defeat the recently adopted amendments of the Constitution.
The "separate but equal" doctrine was quickly extended to cover many areas of public life, such as restaurants, theaters, restrooms, and public schools.
Directions: Answer the following questions in complete sentences.
1)How did the Supreme Court rule?
They ruled against Homer Plessy or for the state. They ruled that segregation is legal as long as the white facility is equal to the black facility.
2)According to Justice Harlan what two things will happen as a result of the decision?
- African Americans will lose their rights
- It will make the southern states think that they do not have to follow the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments.
3)What impact did the courts verdict have on America?
Segregation spread throughout the South.
Separate But Equal?
4)After looking at the pictures are the facilities equal? Did the South do what the Supreme Court told them to do? Explain.
No, the places for the whites are much better then the places for the African Americans.