<P> Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka , 347 U.S. 483 ( 1954 ) , was a landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional . The decision effectively overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 , which allowed state - sponsored segregation , insofar as it applied to public education . Handed down on May 17 , 1954 , the Warren Court 's unanimous ( 9 -- 0 ) decision stated that `` separate educational facilities are inherently unequal . '' As a result , de jure racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution . This ruling paved the way for integration and was a major victory of the Civil Rights Movement , and a model for many future impact litigation cases . However , the decision 's fourteen pages did not spell out any sort of method for ending racial segregation in schools , and the Court 's second decision in Brown II ( 349 U.S. 294 ( 1955 ) ) only ordered states to desegregate `` with all deliberate speed '' . </P>
<P> Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka , 347 U.S. 483 ( 1954 ) , was a landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional . The decision effectively overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 , which allowed state - sponsored segregation , insofar as it applied to public education . Handed down on May 17 , 1954 , the Warren Court 's unanimous ( 9 -- 0 ) decision stated that `` separate educational facilities are inherently unequal . '' As a result , de jure racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution . This ruling paved the way for integration and was a major victory of the Civil Rights Movement , and a model for many future impact litigation cases . However , the decision 's fourteen pages did not spell out any sort of method for ending racial segregation in schools , and the Court 's second decision in Brown II ( 349 U.S. 294 ( 1955 ) ) only ordered states to desegregate `` with all deliberate speed '' . </P>
why did the brown vs board of education occur
why did the brown vs board of education occur
Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896
Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896