In 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the Dred Scott decision that African-Americans were not citizens of the United States. Yet within 18 years, Black Americans would not only have citizenship, but would be guaranteed the right to...

Explains how Jim Crow laws came to be created in the South and what it meant for African Americans. Discusses the Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court case, how its decision was eventually overturned, and the events that brought an end to...

Read the background of the controversial Supreme Court decision in the Plessy v Ferguson case. Follow the arguments for and against "separate but equal." [pdf]

Read about the background of the passage of the 14th Amendment which resulted in the famous case before the Supreme Court, Plessy v Ferguson, almost thirty years later. Suggested student exercises ask students to assess the issue of...

A brief description of the Supreme Court decision, Plessy v Ferguson, in 1896, that solidified the separate but equal rule. Included is the title page of the Supreme Court text of the decision.

Transcript of the Supreme Court's opinion in the 1955 Brown II case decision, which placed increased emphasis on implementing the 1954 Brown decision to desegregate public schools, thus overturning the 1896 decision in Plessy vs....

The U.S. Supreme Court case that overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and dealt with the issues of equal protection and racial discrimination. This resource provides an abstract containing a concise summary, a link to the full text of the...

A website reviewing the Supreme Court's landmark cases, including Marbury v. Madison, Plessy v. Ferguson and the Slaughterhouse cases.

This library of mini-lessons targets a variety of landmark cases from the United States Supreme Court and includes a one-page reading and a one-page activity.

This site gives an interesting look at the idea of "Separate but Equal" and the court's eventual reversal of its decision on it.

A listing of the most significant Supreme Court cases in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries with brief summaries of how they impacted on federalism.

Use primary documents and images to discover the ways state and local governments restricted the newly gained freedoms of African Americans after the Civil War. Compare, contrast, and analyze post-war legislation, court decisions...