Oliver Brown

During the thirteen months from my arrival in Chapel Hill (March 2007) until I finally gained the employment I was seeking (UNC), I did have some interesting experiences.  The best was with Kohl's Department Store (where you can expect great things), but even working as a substitute teacher for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools had its moments.

During the academic year 2007-2008, I worked in a number of their schools, from the primary grades all the way up to high school.  One of the things I was impressed with was the integration of the student bodies, white and black kids mixing freely with each other.

However, forty years earlier (1966) the local school system was legally segregated, with blacks and whites forbidden from going to the same school.  What happened?

In 1896, the Supreme Court of the United States "upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation laws for public facilities as long as the segregated facilities were equal in quality."  The case was Plessy v. Ferguson and the doctrine became known as "separate but equal."

"In 1951, a class action suit was filed against the Board of Education of the City of Topeka, Kansas in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas.  The plaintiffs were thirteen Topeka parents (including Oliver Brown) on behalf of their 20 children."  The case became known as Brown v. The Board of Education.  The plaintiffs complained their children were denied admission to all-white schools close to their homes.

The District Court held in favor of The Board of Education citing the Plessy case.  The US Supreme Court agreed to hear an appeal.

On May 17, 1954 (66 years ago today) the Supreme Court voted unanimously in favor of Brown.  It held that "the segregation of children in public schools solely on the basis of race, even though the physical facilities and other tangible factors may be equal, deprives the children of the minority group of equal educational opportunities."

It took the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School six years before they started to implement the new legally mandated integration of their schools and another six years before it was completed.  Why?

After the Brown decision, the State of North Carolina passed a law requiring parents "to request a transfer if they wanted their children to attend a school of a different race."  In 1959, "Stanley Vickers requested a transfer to an all-white school, but was denied."  The family sued and, in 1961, won the case, thus gaining the transfer.

"All transfers were allowed in (the school year) 1963 to 1964.  School district lines were redrawn to assign equal percentages of black and white students to the schools."  

By the time of my arrival in North Carolina more than forty years later, the period of racial segregation in the public schools of Chapel Hill-Carrboro was all but forgotten.  But, it can't be forgotten.  We must remember our history, warts and all.