Plessy vs ferguson. Significance. History Assignment.

Plessy v. Ferguson
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Lecturer’s Name
Course Name and Number
Assignment Due Date
Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson is a legal case between Homer A. Plessy and John H. Ferguson that ensued in May 1896, leading to a milestone decision by the Supreme Court (Deibel, 2018). The ruling was made based on the constitutionality of racial segregation laws that affected public amenities and facilities and led to the “separate but equal” doctrine (Deibel, 2018). Notably, this principle required that all railroads operating in Louisiana should provide separate but equal accommodations among the white and black American passengers (Bishop, 1977). Additionally, the doctrine prohibited passengers from entering accommodations that were not assigned to them as it was based on their race. The Plessy v. Ferguson ruling had been made just after the reconstruction era, whereby leading to the re-establishment of the racial segregation laws in most of the Southern States (Bishop, 1977). During the reconstruction era, southerners could easily interact freely before the initial segregation laws were implemented, especially on railroad cars where the booking was based on race.
Significance
The Plessy v. Ferguson legal case has presented a race-oriented theme that shows the situation in the late 1800’s in Louisiana and other Southern states (Bishop, 1977). A review of the case’s ruling provides an overview of the “separate but equal” doctrine. This principle means that black Americans had struggled to earn equal treatment in most public facilities. Racial profiling was present, and most of the black or colored races did not enjoy similar treatment compared to that of white Americans. An example is Plessy’s situation where he claimed to be an eighth black African and seven-eighths Caucasian but was treated differently despite the presence of the fourteenth amendment (Deibel, 2018). The Supreme Court’s ruling presented an opportunity where the colored races could enjoy similar ...