Plessy v. Ferguson EOTO #2 (14th Amendment)

Plessy v. Ferguson

There have been many cases that has come through the supreme court that heavily impacted history. One of the many cases that have heavily impacted our history is Plessy v. Ferguson. This case was an example of the 14th amendment being practiced also showing you how even though slavery may have been abolished there was still segregation going on during this time. During the time of Plessy v. Ferguson segregation was one of the biggest debates that was being held. 

The Plessy v.Ferguson case took place during the Reconstruction Era. The Reconstruction Era was a period of time that happened right after the civil war. During this time slavery was being abolished in America. Even though during this time slavery was in the process of being abolished states were still divided on the topic of slavery. And in this case Plessy v.Ferguson just added more fuel to the fire.

Plessy v. Ferguson was a case that took place in 1896. This case was about a black man by the name of Homer Plessy. In 1892 Plessy sat in a white only car of the Louisiana train. He was then asked to get up, but he refused to. He was asked to move to the car of the train that was reserved for blacks. According to Plessy v.Ferguson- Quizlet, "In 1892, Homer Plessy--who was 1/8 black--took a seat in a "whites only" car of a Louisiana train. He refused to move to the car reserved for blacks and was arrested.

A decision was made on this case in the supreme court. According to Plessy v.Ferguson- Quizlet, "The Supreme Court ruled that the "separate but equal" provision of the Louisiana law was constitutional." The separate but equal doctrine was as long as black people got the same thing's as white people (the same treatment and same facilities) that was fair as long as those things remained separate.

You may wonder how was this case an example of the 14th amendment. The 14th amendment states 14th Amendment, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

The way that this case is an example of the 14th amendment is the 14th amendment talks about how all men should be treated equally. But in this case all men are not treated equally. They are not treated equally within this case because the seats on the train were segregated between the whites and blacks. Having segregated seats between the whites and the blacks does not align with 14th amendment. 

Looking at this case from the perspective of Plessy, if we are a country that is supposed to be abiding by our constitution with the 14th amendment being a part of our constitution in this case, we did not abide by it. In court Plessy's lawyers argued that if we are supposed to be a country where we believe that all men are created equal in this situation Plessy was not treated equally to Ferguson. If all men are created equal why is there still segregation within the train?

Based on the information given above you can see how Plessy v.Ferguson was a case that heavily impacted America's history. The outcome of this case was the separate but equal law. Which meant as long as blacks received the same things as whites it was okay as long it stayed separated. The 14th amendment was also displayed within this case because it talks about how America is supposed to be a country where all parties are treated with justice and men are created equal.