Brown v. Board of Education: A Fight for Simple Justice
By Susan Goldman Rubin
Black or white. It shouldn’t matter.
This book got me fired up. It takes us in depth on the Brown
v. Board of Education case of 1954 in which people fought for desegregation of
public schools. Although I was generally aware of the case and the turnout,
this book provides black and white photographs, a full text of the fourteenth amendment,
Chief Justice Warren’s opinion on the decision, NAACP forms that were used in
the case, a detailed timeline, and summaries of each case. Rubin also takes us
through the thought process of the nine supreme court justices. There is no
doubting this was well-researched and analyzed throughout the writing process.
Rubin describes the five individual cases that started at
district level and eventually worked their way up to the supreme court as the
combined case we know as Brown vs. Board of Education. What started off as a
case of Linda Carol Brown, an African American 3rd grader, not being
allowed entry into an all-white school in Topeka, Kansas ended up involving
people from all around the country. This proves to show that the personal is
political, what seemed like a singular issues turned out to be relevant across
the political/social spheres. Thurgood Marshall was the lead lawyer for the
case and NAACP who fought relentlessly for desegregation. Although he was the
leading figure in the case, millions of people got together to stand up against
racial inequality at this time.
This book was able to educate and keep me engaged from start
to finish. It was interesting to read because of the importance of the case but
its racial relevance to today’s society. Rubin did a remarkable job relaying the events and details of
the case as well as providing different perspectives of people involved. Moral of the story: everyone deserves equal access, equal opportunity,
and equal rights regardless of race.
Quick rundown of the case:
Trailer for Mr. Civil Rights: Thurgood Marshall and the
NAACP:
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