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On April 30th of this
year, Linda and Cheryl Brown spoke at Canisius College as part of the
lecture series on the African- American experience. They were on tour to
commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court case
bearing their name that ruled that the segregationist doctrine of
“separate but equal” was inherently unconstitutional.
It was a fitting end to
Fair Housing Month. The Brown sisters presented a clear and accurate
historic framework for the case and challenged us to examine some of the
lingering racist beliefs and practices that prevent us from achieving full
integration in housing and in schools even today. As Linda Brown said,
“After 50 years the court ruling is unfulfilled. We still have de
facto segregation. Housing patterns still determine the racial
content of schools.”
The myth
According to the Brown sisters, in order
to understand the importance of Brown v. Board it is important
distinguish the myth from the historical facts. One of the most popular
myths about Brown v. Board is that it is about one little girl who
challenged a law preventing her from attending an all white school because
she was unable to go to school near her home. This is about as accurate
as the story about the civil rights movement being started by Rosa Parks
not moving to the back of a segregated bus because her feet were tired.
Stories like these
undermine the network of support already in place and the tireless efforts
of organizations like the NAACP. Treating pivotal events as “isolated
incidents” separate from their surrounding history also underplays the
impact of long-term government sanctioned segregation. Neither of these
events were merely a reaction to a single act discrimination, but a
challenge to an entire history of American race relations.
The history
“When events become 50,
they become historic,” said Cheryl Brown, opening her half of the
program. She urged us not to lose sight of the importance of history and
reminded us that, “nothing in our country—bigotry, racism or segregation
happened by accident.” She then discussed two influential court decisions
that reflected the racism that was “part of the fabric of the country.”
In 1857, the Supreme Court
heard the case of Dred Scott v. Sanford. In a horrific decision,
Justice Taney declared that [Blacks] "had no rights which the white man
was bound to respect; and that the negro might justly and lawfully be
reduced to slavery for his benefit.” This was followed in 1896 by
Plessy v Feguson which declared “separate but equal” to be
constitutional.
At the same time, there
were also organized attempts to integrate the schools. One hundred and
five years prior to Brown v. Board, the case Roberts v. Boston
challenged that city’s segregated school policy. Heard by the
Massachusetts Supreme Court, the case was ultimately decided in favor of
the city. However, the fact that the case reached that level demonstrates
what a high degree of support for school desegregation there was even
then.
In the state of Kansas
alone, there were eleven previous attempts to desegregate schools before
McKinley Burnett, the chair of the Topeka Chapter NAACP tried to convince
the Topeka Board of education to end this practice. When they refused,
Oliver Brown et al vs. Topeka Kansas Board of Education was begun.
Ms. Brown pointed out the
importance of the “et. al.” This represents that, contrary to the myth,
the case was a collective action—13 other families were named plaintiffs,
and over 300 plaintiffs from several states were represented in the
action. Legal teams and community activists supported the plaintiffs
throughout the proceedings. (Oliver Brown was not even the first named
plaintiff; he received that place of honor because he was the first
male named plaintiff.)
On May 17, 1954, at 12:52
p.m., the Supreme Court made a decision. According to Cheryl Brown, the
importance of the moment could not be underestimated. In her opinion, the
decision was the beginning of the end of segregation sanctioned by law,
overturned 23 state laws permitting segregation, reversed Plessy v.
Ferguson, and ended debate over states rights. It even had an effect
on foreign policy, allowing the President to counter a perceived communist
propaganda campaign against the U.S. which used the government’s treatment
of African Americans to condemn democracy. (This, Ms. Brown pointed out
worked only for a moment-- we were back on the world stage after the
murder of Emmett Till).
“With Brown, we thought we
would finish the unfinished business…We could no longer be the United
States of Denial,” Ms. Brown said. But, she said they couldn’t have
imagined at that moment the backlash the decision would bring.
The challenges
Linda Brown asked “did we
do the nation a disservice?” Racism remained strong. In Prince Edward
County, Va., for example, people were so committed to their biases that
the schools closed for 5 years rather than integrate. One hundred elected
officials, (Strom Thurmon among them), drew up a document protesting the
decision. This document, which came to be known as “The Southern
Manifesto,” declared that the undersigned were committed to segregation
and would not comply with the Supreme Court decision.
These attitudes continue to
challenge the positive effects of the Brown decision. One way they
manifest themselves today is in the feeling of nostalgia which seems to be
enveloping the nation. This attitude, a desire to return to the “good old
days,” is clearly based on a misunderstanding of history. “Leave it to
Beaver” Ms. Brown reminded us, “was not a documentary.”
Another challenge to the
impact of the Brown decision is the effect that both past and
present discriminatory housing policies have on education. Low income
housing built in minority neighborhoods coupled with the disruptive effect
of urban renewal pushes minority families into highly concentrated
low-income areas. We finance schools with tax dollars so schools in
impoverished districts don’t have much to work with. Schools then become a
justification for “White flight,” which in turn contributes to further
segregation.
Perhaps the greatest
challenge is silence. “Education is the foundation of our democracy,” says
Cheryl Brown. So why is everyone, including current presidential
candidates included remaining so quiet about our re-segregated schools?
Why do we ignore the lack of resources in inner city primarily minority
public schools (but not in while suburban schools?) If we do not address
the racism underlying housing and education policies, “We ensure that
another generation lives as second class citizens.”
Cheryl Brown added “Brown
was the down payment on freedom then. Now it remains an opportunity.” |
