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| Advancing Creative Solutions in Education | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| “Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.” George Washington Carver |
| Historical Documents |
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The Story of Briggs v. Elliott
An essay explaining the origins and development of Briggs v. Elliott. The author writes: “ Although history books record that the case which ultimately ended school segregation was Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, one could justifiably argue that the decision really began in South Carolina in the case known as Briggs v. Elliott.” |
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Briggs Petition
A transcript of the original petition filed by Harry Briggs and several citizens of Clarendon County, SC in 1949 against unequal support for Black and White schools. Many historians consider this petition as the origins of the cases that were decided in Brown v. Board of Education. Note that the names of the citizens’ lawyers, including Thurgood Marshall, were included. |
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Reply To Briggs Petition
A transcript of the Clarendon County School Board’s formal response to the original petition filed by citizens of Clarendon County, SC. This response came almost three months after the original petition. |
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Briggs v. Elliott Trial Transcript: Kenneth Clark
A transcript of the complete testimony of sociologist Kenneth Clark in Briggs trial. In his testimony, Clark reports on his “doll” tests. Clark’s work in this field was cited as an authority for racial segregation’s effects of inferiority on Black children in footnote 11 of the US Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education. |
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Briggs v. Elliott Trial Transcript: H.B. Betchman
A transcript of the testimony of the Superintendent of Schools of District 22, Summerton, SC in Briggs trial. Betchman presents the al-white school board’s perspective of its segregated schools. The testimony includes a cross-examination by Thurgood Marshall. |
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Briggs v. Elliott 1: US District Court
Briggs v. Elliott 1: US District Court [June 23, 1951] The full text of the first Briggs decision, a three-judge panel opinion issued after the trial of Briggs. This opinion did not enjoin racial segregation in schools but ordered funding and support for Summerton SC schools to be equalized. |
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Briggs v. Elliott 2: US District Court
The full text of the second Briggs decision. This opinion again failed to enjoin racial segregation in the schools. It was appealed to the US Supreme Court and joined by the Supreme Court as one of the cases decided in Brown v. Board of Education. |
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Brown v. Board of Education
Handwritten Version of Chief Justice’s Draft Opinion. A replication of the draft opinion. Chief Justice Earl Warren wrote the unanimous opinion in Brown v. Board of Education. Read the handwritten copies of one of his drafts written on a legal pad with edits and mark-outs as he edited it before circulating the opinion to other Justices for their review and reaction. |
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Brown v. Board of Education: US Supreme Court
The full text of the historic US Supreme Court’s opinion. The opinion combined Briggs and other cases into one decision. Some historians note that the combined cases listed the Brown case from Kansas first because some Supreme Court justices did not want to focus the opinion solely on the Southern states. |