[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6630]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




THE INTRODUCTION OF A RESOLUTION MARKING THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF BROWN 
                         V. BOARD OF EDUCATION

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                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 30, 2014

  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a 
resolution marking the 60th anniversary of the United States Supreme 
Court decision of Brown v. Board of Education, which was handed down on 
May 17, 1954. This case was a landmark decision for the 20th century 
civil rights movement and a turning point for our nation.
  Brown overturned 58 years of a ``separate but equal'' policy 
established in Plessy v. Ferguson that was anything but equal. Chief 
Justice Earl Warren wrote in the Court's unanimous opinion that even if 
facilities are equal with respect to buildings, curricula, 
qualifications and salaries of teachers, and other ``tangible'' 
factors, that the effect of segregation, the very concept itself, meant 
that separate facilities could never be equal facilities. The Court 
ruled: ``Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal'' and, 
consequently, ``segregation is a denial of the equal protection of the 
laws.'' After this decision, access to public facilities could never 
again be denied on the basis of race.
  The decision was a victory for the mid-century civil rights movement 
that also led to legislative pushes which drastically changed the 
outlook of race relations in America: the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the 
Voting Rights Act, and the Fair Housing Act. Brown helped level the 
playing field for all Americans regardless of race.
  While the battle over segregation continued at the state level for 
many years afterward, and our nation still today has many civil rights 
issues to address, Brown remains a moment of historical significance 
that ushered our country to contemporary standards of humanity and 
compassion. As we mark this important milestone in our nation's 
history, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

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