Brown V. Board Of Education Court Case Study

Across the United States of America, every student from elementary school to post secondary institutions, has at least a rudimentary understanding of the Brown v. Board of Education court case. At the very least, the student would be able to recite the phrase “separate is inherently unequal” and explain that the court case led to the desegregation of public schools in the United States. However, very few would be able to explain about the flaws in the the creation of Brown or how the landmark case also hurt the Black community immediately following its implementation and continues to haunt the U.S. today.

Before one can examine the long-term repercussions of Brown v. Board of Education, one must first investigate what made the historic court case possible. Despite what social studies curriculum may imply, Brown did not come forth simply because

Board of Education may have ruled that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal” and declared that public schools must desegregate, but these achievements cannot be the only thing one considers (Brown, 1954). While the desegregation of schools serves as a landmark victory of the Civil Rights movement of America, every battle comes with costs. When schools desegregated, most Black students moved into predominantly White districts. To do the opposite would never be considered, due to the fact that the schools designated for Black children were often run down and lacked adequate funding. As a result of students leaving, Black educators lost a total of “38,000 jobs...between 1954 and 1965” (Ladson-Billings, 2004). This eradicating of Black educators caused monumental damage to a generation of students. No longer did could Black students go to school and see themselves reflected in the adult leaders and role models there. This, combined with the outpouring of hate that followed desegregation attempts, all seems worse when one considers that post-Brown, many believed racial inequality in schools was