desegregation at the college level

July 08, 2005

Brown v. Board of Education & A History of Collegiate Integration, by Amii Follmer

As a student at the University of Maryland College Park and resident of the state of Maryland, it's almost hard to believe that I never encountered racism on a more personal level or had to deal with segregation until I came to college. The University, however, was not always so diverse. It was only in the later half of the 20th century that African Americans were allowed to attend the school, or even that white students were allowed to attend Bowie State University, the other public institution in Prince George’s County. As of today the University of Maryland College Park has a diverse student body but as I learned, things were not always that way.

On May 17th, 1954 Chief Justice Warren and the Supreme Court decided that "in the field of public education the doctrine of "separate-but-equal" has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." The unanimous decision of Brown v. Board of Education ended school segregation and set the stage for a number of integration victories to follow. However, the country was not unanimously elated in the decision, and as was shown in the South’s increasingly slow shift towards integration it seemed as though the idealist law would never truly be reality. Especially with the disappointing "with all deliberate speed" clause added in 1955, it seemed as though the law was almost being set up for failure.

Fifty years after the decision integration is still a compelling issue. While larger and larger numbers agree in polls that segregation is wrong, there is evidence that at least to some extent, segregation is still with us. "Studies have also shown that white Americans by large margins now embrace the principle of racial equality." (Sniderman 5) It also seems that more recently issues like busing, affirmative action and vouchers have taken the reigns of the argument. But the heart of the argument is now, as it always has been, a black and white issue.

The 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court Decision stated that it was not unconstitutional for Homer Plessy, a man only one eighth black, to have to sit in the "colored" section of a Louisiana train because the coaches were "separate but equal." Plessy had tried to sue on the basis of his Fourteenth Amendment rights, but the court failed to see state sponsored segregation as unlawful. Justice John Marshall Harlan was the sole dissenter on the decision, "Out constitution is color blind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens." (Blaustein and Ferguson 98)

Many civil rights groups worked against segregation in the early 20th century, but no organization worked harder than the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the NAACP. Thurgood Marshall and the legal team of the NAACP took on case after case and built up a strong reputation before trying to tackle school desegregation.

An early victory for Marshall actually came to him in Prince George’s County in Pearson v. Murray (1936). Donald G. Murray was denied admission to the University of Maryland law school, but the Board of Regents agreed to pay his tuition at any out of state school where he could gain admittance since Maryland did not have a black law school. Murray sued under the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and won admission.

Another big win was McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents (1950), where the Supreme Court ruled that a public institution of higher learning could not provide different treatment to a student solely because of his race, doing so deprived the student of their Fourteenth Amendment rights of Due Process. Mr. McLaurin was denied admission to the University of Oklahoma and sued for admittance on the basis that there was no equal facility for African Americans. He won but the school provided separate facilities, so McLaurin sued again on the basis that the new facilities were unequal. He lost in the District Court but won when he appealed to the Supreme Court.

That same year another victory for integration came in the Supreme Court's Sweatt v. Painter decision. An African American student was accepted to a new separate law school in lieu of admittance to the University of Texas Law School. The Supreme Court ruled that the new school was not equal because of quantitative differences in facilities and intangible factors such as its isolation from most of the future lawyers with whom its graduates would interact.
While the McLaurin and Sweatt decisions made strides for secondary education in single cases, no universal legislation was yet in place. The NAACP went searching for plaintiffs to take on segregation at the elementary level. While Marshall and others worried that such a case might be asking too much, they realized that it was necessary. Unfortunately, finding parents willing to put their children’s names down was not an easy task. In the South, African Americans who chose to fight for equality often found themselves fired from their jobs, chased off their land or threatened by the Klu Klux Klan. Eventually people came forward, and there were soon five suits to defend that would become Brown v. Board of Education.

The first was Briggs v. Elliott, a collection of 20 plaintiffs in Clarendon County, South Carolina spearheaded by Reverend Albert Joseph DeLaine. The case initially targeted racial inequality, not segregation, but with Marshall's help it grew. The resources for African American students were appalling in comparison to the white schools. Only a fraction of the money spent per student on white children was allotted for black children, and in some cases “colored” schools lacked running water and electricity.

The four other cases came from Virginia, DC, Delaware and Kansas. In Virginia the case came from black students at Robert R. Morton High School in Farmville. In April of 1951, a junior, Barbara Johns led 450 students in a strike at Morton. Gardner Bishop in Washington D.C. led a case on behalf of his daughter who was bused to an overcrowded black school. In Wilmington, DE Sarah Bulah sued on behalf of her daughter who couldn’t attend the town’s well-equipped local school and was bused to an old school in Wilmington. Ms. Bulah turned to Louis Redding, the first black member of the Delaware bar, and one of Marshall's aides, Jack Greenburg for help. Redding and Greenburg had already won a case against the University of Delaware, requiring them to admit black undergraduates.

The last case was in Topeka, where the issue was not as much equal facilities but that children were denied admittance to schools in their area and sent to segregated schools far away. Oliver Brown agreed to fight for his daughter Linda with a little persuasion from the NAACP. The highlight of the Topeka case was the use of a psychological argument that "children who were part of such an officially sanctioned system were made to feel inferior. And children who felt inferior would necessarily lose motivation to learn." (Patterson 34)

When the cases were all collected Marshall and the NAACP realized the case would not be an easy one. Fighting against history, and precedents like Plessy, the outcome of the suit was uncertain. So Marshall used the argument from the Brown case that segregated schools damaged the psyches of black children. Kenneth Clark, a psychologist and his wife Mamie did tests on African American children by showing drawings of brown and white dolls to black children. The children were more likely to call the white dolls "good" or "nice," or say they preferred the white dolls.
It was just the luck the plaintiffs needed when Eisenhower named Governor Earl Warren of California successor to the late Chief Justice Vinson. Many say it was Warren who pulled the court together and was able to produce the unanimous decision in favor of desegregation.

But on May 31, 1955 the Court issued what would become known as Brown II, where it was said that the Court "should not issue what it cannot enforce." This is the decision that brought about the hotly debated "with all deliberate speed" clause, stating that integration should occur within a "reasonable" timeframe to work out all the issues that came along with it, such as new districts and busing. However, it seemed to turn into an excuse not to integrate.
Nine years later, in 1964 the mandate to desegregate reached higher education in the Florida ex rel. Hawkins v. Board of Control, but the new ruling did little to change higher education in the South. Fortunately, one of the most promising pieces of legislation was on the horizon; the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was designed to eliminate discrimination, and specifically Title VI of the act restricted spending of federal funds in segregated schools and colleges. No longer could the South rely on "all deliberate speed," since Title IV allowed credible lawsuits against discrimination almost guaranteed success. It seemed as though integration had finally gotten the push it needed from the federal government.

While the Office of Civil Rights in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare conducted compliance reviews, a larger case was brewing. In 1970 Kenneth Adams, a black student from Mississippi, filed a suit against Elliot Richardson, the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, basically for the Department's inability to enforce Title VI. Adams v. Richardson (1973) was technically a victory for integration but it left public black colleges in a bind. Basically the plaintiffs and the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education wanted to eliminate the dual system without eliminating the strong public black colleges that had emerged in the last century. In 1990 the Adams case was dismissed as a result of the Court's ruling in the Women's Equity Action League v. Cavazos, which some believe to have been a huge setback for desegregation.

While the Women's Equity Action League case ended federal monitoring of desegregation compliance, it could not refute Title VI that "no person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color or national origin, be excluded from participation in, or be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."

While for a steady period in the late 20th century the numbers showed increasing integration, it seems as though the figures have started to shift back down. White flight from inner cities to suburbs is still a very real issue, and more and more people are writing off busing as a thing of the past, a waste of resources with little or no results. In 2003 a very controversial Supreme Court ruling in Grutter v. Bollinger upheld the right of universities to consider race in admissions in order to achieve a diverse student body. This affirmative action victory has been hotly debated, as the split Court’s 5-4 ruling showed. As Justice Sandra Day O’Connor wrote, "We expect that 25 years from now, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary to further the interest approved today."
The future of integration is obviously still uncertain. Some are more hopeful than others, but most agree there is still work to be done. Although the Civil Rights Act and victories like Brown have put us on the right path, 229 years after our Founding Fathers declared that "all men are created equal," the fight is not yet over to ensure the continued prosperity of equal treatment under the law and "liberty and justice for all."

References

1. Brown, Christopher. The Quest to Define Collegiate Desegregation: Black Colleges, Title VI Compliance, and Post-Adams Litigation. Connecticut: Bergin and Garvey, 1999.

2. Patterson, James. Brown v. Board of Education: a Civil Rights Milestone and it’s Troubled Legacy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.

3. Sniderman, Paul. Race and Inequality: A Study in American Values. Chatham, NJ: Chatham House, 1985.

4. Williams, Juan. Thurgood Marshall: American Revolutionary. New York: Random House, 1998.

Posted by Prince Georges at 09:43 AM | Comments (0)

Greenbelt, a planned city

July 08, 2005

Greenbelt, in Prince George's County, MD, is a planned city, built by the federal government in the 1930's according to innovative ideas in planning and social organization. Today, it remains a distinctive and successful community. University of Maryland student Erin Boyland has constructed a set of web pages on Greenbelt. Click to see her introduction, or go directly to her pages on Greenbelt's history, philosophy, art deco architecture cooperative, volunteer fire department, or bibliography.

Posted by Prince Georges at 09:34 AM | Comments (1)

historical fiction: desegregration through students' eyes

July 07, 2005

Mandy Fraser, a student at the University of Maryland, has written a short story about a pair of imaginary students--one African American and one White--who experience the beginning of busing in 1973. She explains ....

Prince George's County was more than a little late in abiding by Brown v. Board of Education. Twenty years, to be exact, of official foot dragging until the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) forced change. The January of 1973 saw the largest busing plan implemented in the country amidst some very unhappy parents and their students. The shift away from the neighborood school and into, for the most part, unknown territory was unpopular but necessary for a full realization of the ruling handed down from the Supreme Court two decades before.

The problem then was a combination of hosing segregation and covert racism. Today, we no longer have segregation based on race. In fact, the county's school system is almost 75% black, a side-effect of the "white flight" phenomenon in which white homeowners have moved into other parts of Maryland. The busing system in the County stayed intact through the better part of three decades and it is only now being disbanded, with a return to neighborood schools.

The short story I've written, entitled "Prince George's County, Circa 1973: William Wirt Junior High School (As seen through the eyes of Jesse Wheeler and Nicholas Arnet)" sought to expand upon the clear-cut facts of the situation and explore its more human elements. These were simply children being placed into a situation that they had no control over. There have been some serious questions asked pertaining to the ethics of such a move by the School Board, and the tale does shed light on some of the more negative aspects of the busing.

We follow Jesse Wheeler from his first day at William Wirt and some of his experiences with his new white classmates and teachers. Every other chapter switches perspectives, showing us these same days through the eyes of Nicholas Arnet, a white boy who befriends the new kid and some of the issues attached with this burgeoning friendship.

The interview I conducted with Mrs. Cassandra Hall, along with the interviews and quotes I came upon in preliminary research, helped to flesh out some of the more real aspects of the tale. Some situations were inspired by her own experiences as a child in the county during the 1970s.

Posted by Prince Georges at 10:50 PM | Comments (0)

Prince George's County: The Beginning

May 23, 2005

University of Maryland student Toyosi Ogunkua has written this essay on the founding of our county:

Prince George's County, also known as "PG County," was formed by a General Assembly on St. George's Day, April 23, 1696. The new county was formed from the combination of lands from both Calvert and Charles County. It was named for Prince George of Denmark. The first people to settle down in Prince George's County were Native Americans, who arrived in Southern Maryland about 10,000 years ago. The first European who recorded a visit to the area was Captain John Smith, in the year 1608, through the Potomac River.

Original Inhabitants

The Indians who originally inhabited the area included the Piscataways, who lived in the southern part of the county. The Susquehannocks lived in northern Prince George's County. The first significant European contact with the Indians came in the form of traders. Prince George's County grew in the 1700s with the arrival of men and women from the British Isles and other parts of Europe. The groups consisted of freedmen, indentured servants, and African slaves. The main occupation of the people of Prince George's County was consistent with the occupations of most of the other colonist during that period: they were farmers. Prince George's County developed mostly from the wealth they received from the growth of tobacco. The plantation system was predominant, and the Church of England was the established church. The county also became dominant in horse racing.

Establishment of Maryland

In order to understand how Prince George's County was created, we must take a look at the creation of the colony of Maryland. Maryland was created from a grant in 1632 from King Charles I of England. The first colonist came on two ships, the Ark and the Dove. The concept of the Colony of Maryland was the brainchild of George Calvert. Calvert was knighted and had a long role in government service. He was a member in Parliament, acted as Secretary of State, and was a member of Privy Council.

Before the land grant could be granted for Maryland, Calvert died. The grant was therefore issued to his eldest son, Cecil Calvert. Cecil looked at Maryland as a venture to increase the wealth and the prestige of his family. Cecil Calvert was also driven by other motives. Mainly, he wanted to create a Catholic colony in the new world, because Catholicism was frowned upon by the crown. It would be impossible due to the small population of Catholics in England to create a Catholic colony. Instead, he created Maryland as a colony with religious toleration. Cecil remained in England, when the original colonist sailed, to defend the charter against all opposition.

The colonist arrived amidst a battle between the Piscataways and the Susquehannocks. The Governor of Maryland at its creation was Leonard Calvert, a younger brother of Cecil. Upon arrival he was advised by a trader to seek permission from the Piscataway Indians before settling. They agreed, seeing the new arrivals as a potential ally against the threat of the Susquehannocks.

The trip from England had taken the Colonist 3.5 months. The first colonist to arrive numbered 140. They were mostly young Protestant men. Aboard were also Catholic gentlemen, the younger sons of the gentry. The promise of land had brought most of the people to Maryland. The colonists bought land that the Piscataways were abandoning due to their fear of raids by the Susquehannocks. This land came to be known as Saint Mary's City and was the first settlement in Maryland. The religious toleration of Maryland drew many settlers from all forms of Christianity.

Maryland was prime example of the principle of mercantilism between a mother country and her colonies. Maryland sent England Tobacco in return for coffee, rum, tools clothing and other finished goods necessary for survival. The population of Maryland was very spread out, due to the use of the Potomac as the main form of transportation through boats. This is the reason even in Maryland today, there is a strong emphasis on the county as the most popular form of local government. The counties were spread out, because people lived on large land tracts. They did not live together in cities. A government for all counties would equal poor regulation. The more direct county government was therefore accepted.

Settling of Prince George's County

The settling of Prince George's County started from migration from the southern parts of Maryland. The settlers to the county came up the Patuxent and Potomac on boats and canoes. Their primary obstacle was clearing the land to build a home and farms. Settlers built simple homes, surrounded by a small plot of land for farming.

The county did not officially become Prince George's County until a generation after the arrival of the first settlers. It was the practice in Maryland not to deem an area a county until it was populous enough to support a county government. Prince George's county was the sixth county established in Maryland.

The court of the county had the most power, acting as both the judicial and executive branch. The court levied taxes, built and maintained roads, issued licenses and did all the other things that the county needed. The sheriff was the other position in government which had power. The county at its creation also contained a fair number of Piscataway Indians. The increase in the size of the county led a lot of these Indians to move away. This was caused by new restrictions in areas to live, and where they could hunt for food. The Indians moved to Pennsylvania.

Their Reasons for Coming

The question still remains, why did the settlers come? Why would anyone leave a secure European society, to the dangerous, unsettled frontier? The answer lies in the actual people who migrated to the colonies. These people consisted of individuals who did not possess lands in Europe. The opportunity of owning land in the colonies drew the multitudes. The second sons of great landowners in Europe also migrated to the colonies. The reason is because the legal system in Europe gave all the land to the eldest son of a landowner. The rest of the sons were left to find their own way. The opportunity of being land owners, made the risk of the colonies equal the rewards for the second sons of the upper class.

It was not only the settlers that had motives to come to the new world. The crown saw great financial incentives in establishing colonies. The colonies could provide products to differentiate the English Import. The colonies could also give England cheap raw materials it did not possess on the British Isles. Lastly, the colonies provided a place to diffuse the ever growing population of England.

The other driving force for the settlers was the idea of colonies with religious freedom. Most European nations had one main religion that was championed by the state. The colony of Maryland was created primarily to provide a haven for those who wanted to worship a religion opposite that of the state. The colony of Maryland was one of the original few that provided religious toleration. The Calverts' original plan for Maryland was to make it a place for Catholicism. The English Catholic population was too small to support a Catholic colony. The Calverts then changed their position to one of religious toleration. In England, it was a requirement for the citizens to show their loyalty to the Church of England. They had to go to their local church a few times a year, and take communion at least once a year. Failure to attend church, led to fines and even in extreme cases, jail. All of these factors provided good motives for Catholics to migrate away from the clutch of the king, to an area they could worship as they pleased.

Bibliography

Facts & History. Prince George's County, Maryland 2004.

Feeling at Home in Prince George's County History.

McSherry, James. A history of Maryland; from its settlement in 1634 to the year 1848, with an account of its first discovery, and the various explorations of the Chesapeake Bay, anterior to, its settlement; to which is added, a copious appendix, containing the names of the officers of the old Maryland line: the lords proprietary of the province, and the governors of Maryland, from its settlement to the present time. Baltimore, J. Murphy & Co.; Cushings & Bailey 1852.

Prince George's County Historical Society History

Prince George's County History.

Quinn, D. Early Maryland in a Wider World. Wayne State University Press. Detroit, Michigan, 1982.

Van Horn, R.L. Out of the past: Prince Georgeans and their land. Riverdale, Md. Prince George's County Historical Society, 1976.

Posted by Prince Georges at 01:27 AM | Comments (4)

an oral history of desegregation

May 02, 2005

Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, MD was racially segregated until Bill Thomas became its first African American student in 1955. Some of today's Northwestern students interviewed Mr. Thomas and many other eye-witnesses to uncover the story of desegregation at their school. View their animated presentation and then proceed to see a timeline, interview summaries, and a discussion guide.

Posted by Prince Georges at 04:03 PM | Comments (15)

an oral history of desegregation

May 02, 2005

Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, MD was racially segregated until Bill Thomas became its first African American student in 1955. Some of today's Northwestern students interviewed Mr. Thomas and many other eye-witnesses to uncover the story of desegregation at their school. View their animated presentation and then proceed to see a timeline, interview summaries, and a discussion guide.

Posted by Prince Georges at 04:03 PM | Comments (15)

archaeology in Prince George's County

May 01, 2005

Prince George's County has been inhabited by human beings for thousands of years. Today, archaeologists are uncovering evidence of Native Americans, European settlers, African slaves and free people, and later communities. University of Maryland student Curran Muhlberger has created a clickable map with the major sites.

Posted by Prince Georges at 05:51 PM | Comments (1)