The Plessy V. Ferguson Case

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Throughout American history there is abundance of people and events that go against society's norm to invoke a change. One thing that constantly is acted on is civil rights. Throughout the 1800s there is a plethora of court cases on the laws surrounding segregation. In 1896 Homer Plessy chose to sit in a whites only section but he was one eighth black and so they arrested him and this caused a very controversial case. Homer Plessy got tired of unfair treatment to blacks then decided to act which, caused a court case that opened the eyes of many.
Leading up to the Supreme Court’s decision there were many trials before hand. The Plessy V. Ferguson case started in 1892 as a challenge to Louisiana's separate car act, which faced blacks and whites to stay in separate but equal areas on trains. Plessy felt this law was a violation of rights and unconstitutional. “Plessy, acting on behalf of a committee that had been formed to Jim Crow laws, intentionally broke the law in order to initiate a case.”() Because Plessy was a part of this committee it can be assumed that he felt very strongly about Civil Rights. Plessy was very smart and he knew that there was a case here that could be argued and that could get people involved in Civil Rights. “The …show more content…
A 7-1 decision stating to uphold the segregation law in favor of Ferguson. The court said that it was legal to have the segregation law as long as the facilities are “separate but equal”. “In the key passage of the opinion, the court stated that segregation was legal and constitutional as long as “facilities were equal.” The court allowed Louisiana to uphold this segregation law because technically it was legal. This doesn’t mean that it was ethical by any means though. People still to this day do not like this ruling even though it is correct. Plessy had a very valid point but it was never fully recognized and appreciated in his time

Plessy V. Ferguson Case

Plessy v. Ferguson: A Landmark Case and its Impact on “Separate but Equal” Throughout the South in the 1880s and 1890s, there was a big difference made between Caucasian and African Americans. African Americans were not allowed to eat in the same place. (Swann-Wright, p. 10) On May 18, 1896, the US Supreme Court had issued a ruling that inaugurated “Separate but equal” racial segregation. (Marquand, p. 10) The Plessy v. Ferguson case was dealing with the law that was adopted in 1890 that provides…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Case

Culture” at the time of the Plessy v. Ferguson case was the belief that blacks and women were unequal to others in power. Also that blacks and whites should be separated. The beliefs affect the Supreme Court rulings by the way people feel about those subjects at the time. It was a long uphill battle to get the Supreme Court to rule in favor of blacks and women. Civil rights are important because it grants freedom to all and cannot be taken away. Although civil rights cases are common, each one is different…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Case Study

The case of Plessy v. Ferguson is an African-American man buying a first class train ticket in Louisiana and being told to go to the black section of the train. However, the man, Homer Plessy refused to go to the black section and was forcefully arrested for going against the Separate Car Act of 1890. The Separate Car Act allowed for African-Americans to be segregated on trains and the punishment for wrongdoing was a $25 dollar fine and up to twenty days in jail. Homer Plessy went against the act…

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The Plessy V. Ferguson Court Case

fought for their rights. Unfortunately, others were not very welcoming of this idea. As a demonstration of beliefs and struggle, blacks began to boycott and protest. One man, Homer Plessy refused to move to a black train car when asked. This eventually started the Plessy v. Ferguson Court Case. Plessy V. Ferguson decided the “separate but equal” doctrine, meaning that the black and whites could have separate facilities, as long as they were the same in equality. In 1890, U.S government officials…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Case Analysis

in the Plessy v Ferguson case was morally based on racial bias and discrimination due to the demonstration of unjust racial disparity in the criminal justice system. The ruling of the Plessy v Ferguson case led to civil war and gave legal standing to the idea of separate but equal. In the first opposition, the justices rejected Plessy’s argument that the Louisiana law conflicted with the Thirteenth Amendment because it was believed to be “ too clear for argument” (78 Plessy v. Ferguson) . According…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Case Study

The Plessy v. Ferguson case challenged the 14th amendment which granted citizenship to all newly freed slaves. It was ruled that all aspects of the 14th amendment didn’t apply to everyone. The purpose of this amendment was to create equality between races, however this didn’t happen. This case was brought along when an African-American, Homer Plessy, refused sitting in a Jim Crow Car, which was the first official law that commanded segregation on the trains. Plessy v. Ferguson case allowed segregation…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Case Analysis

these would impact the USA's future? After the abolishment of slavery in 1865, many of these court cases were…

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The 14th Amendment: The Plessy V. Ferguson Case

protected for all citizens because of the Supreme Court Case (Plessy v. Ferguson) In the Plessy v. Ferguson case, Plessy, who was a black U.S. citizen, bought a first class train ticket, and intentionally took a seat in a railroad car reserved for white passengers. Because he did this, he got taken to court. The question argued in court was whether plessy was denied the “equal protection of law” in the 14th Amendment. Plessy was then proven innocent. Plessy was being treated unequally (especially seeing he…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Case Brief Summary

Plessy v. Ferguson 163 U.S. 537 (1896) Facts of the case Homer Plessy purchased a first-class ticket for the East Louisiana Railway. Plessy chose to sit in a white only section of the train. After refusing orders from the conductor, Plessy was removed and arrested for violation of state segregation laws. Louisiana state legislature 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…

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Plessy V. Ferguson Supreme Court Case

Jim Crow laws were supposed to be “separated-but-equal”, but after Plessy v. Ferguson decision the laws were not equal at all for the black people. The laws took away the rights and freedom of blacks, and the Supreme Court decision legalized segregation. That created more Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow laws affect the daily lives of blacks by separating them from public spaces, transportation, and it took away most of their voting rights. First, the Separate Car act made blacks sit in a different car than…

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