MAJOR CIVIL RIGHTS CASES
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) (separate but equal)
Korematsu v. US
• One of the Japanese tried to sue because he lost his business
• Caused the closer of internment camps because it was a violation of their
constitutional rights
De Jure Discrimination (segregation by law) (NAACP)
• Discrimination by law (the law states that blacks have to this or that)
• Leading force was NAACP against discrimination
Powell v. Alabama (1932)
• The United States Supreme Court reversed the convictions of nine young black men for
allegedly raping two white women on a freight train near Scottsboro, Alabama
• Arrested – denied jury of his peers and attorney
• Appealed to state court – denied
• Appealed to federal district court – denied
• Appealed to federal circuit court – denied
• Appealed to Supreme Court – Accepted
o Easy case to prove because there wasn’t blacks on jury
NAACP decided on strategy to use obvious cases and make their way up to Supreme court
Thurgood Marshall was their leading figure in most cases
Morgan v. Virginia (1946) (public transportation and interstate lines)
• Bus and railroad carts were segregated
• Bus would stop at state line to reseat blacks to the back
• It became unconstitutional to segregate in state lines
Mendez v. Westminister (1947) (segregation of Mexican Americans (social equality)
• City of California
• Segregated Mexicans from California schools
• It became Unconstitutional to create social inequality
• First case in which Mexicans sought equality in the education system
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) (separate but equal)
Korematsu v. US
• One of the Japanese tried to sue because he lost his business
• Caused the closer of internment camps because it was a violation of their
constitutional rights
De Jure Discrimination (segregation by law) (NAACP)
• Discrimination by law (the law states that blacks have to this or that)
• Leading force was NAACP against discrimination
Powell v. Alabama (1932)
• The United States Supreme Court reversed the convictions of nine young black men for
allegedly raping two white women on a freight train near Scottsboro, Alabama
• Arrested – denied jury of his peers and attorney
• Appealed to state court – denied
• Appealed to federal district court – denied
• Appealed to federal circuit court – denied
• Appealed to Supreme Court – Accepted
o Easy case to prove because there wasn’t blacks on jury
NAACP decided on strategy to use obvious cases and make their way up to Supreme court
Thurgood Marshall was their leading figure in most cases
Morgan v. Virginia (1946) (public transportation and interstate lines)
• Bus and railroad carts were segregated
• Bus would stop at state line to reseat blacks to the back
• It became unconstitutional to segregate in state lines
Mendez v. Westminister (1947) (segregation of Mexican Americans (social equality)
• City of California
• Segregated Mexicans from California schools
• It became Unconstitutional to create social inequality
• First case in which Mexicans sought equality in the education system
