PLESSY VS. FERGUSON
By: Cristian Figueroa, Joseph Flores and Keelie Averett
Separate but Equal
Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896), is a landmark united states supreme court decision upholding the constitutionally of state laws requiring racial segregation in public facilities under the doctrine of "separate but equal".The decision was handed down by a vote of 7 to 1 with the majority opinion written by Justice Henry Billings Brown and the dissent written by Justice John Marshall Harlan
background:
In 1890, the state of Louisiana passed a law (the Separate Car Act) that required separate accommodations for blacks and whites on railroads, including separate railway cars.Concerned, a group of prominent black, , and white New Orleans residents formed the Comité des Citoyens (Committee of Citizens) dedicated to repeal the law. They eventually persuaded Homer Plessy, a man of mixed race, to participate in an orchestrated test case.