National Affairs 1955: The Supreme Court Demands Desegration

THE SUPREME COURT The Powerful Tide

This time there was no simple sentence that meant "guilty" or "innocent," no terse phrase that decreed a statute "unconstitutional" or "constitutional." Yet the 1,000 words that Chief Justice Earl Warren read off to the crowded Supreme Court chamber one day last week released a powerful tide of law that will change the social face of the South before it has rolled to its farthest reach. A year ago the court decreed Negro segregation unconstitutional in public schools of the U.S. Now, after long consideration of pleas by Negro and Southern white lawyers, of...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!