Critics of school choice claim support for educational options was an outgrowth of racist, segregationist views following the U.S. Supreme Court's Ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. In this paper, I examine these claims by analyzing the development of the public school system in the United States and the historical records from Citizens for…

Brown v. Board (1954) catalyzed a nationwide effort by the federal judiciary to desegregate public schools by court order, representing a major achievement for the U.S. civil rights movement. Four decades later, courts began dismissing schools from desegregation decrees in a staggered fashion, causing their racial homogeneity to rise. I leverage…

Polling data routinely indicate broad support for the concept of diverse schools, but integration initiatives--both racial and socioeconomic--regularly encounter significant opposition. We leverage a nationally representative survey experiment to provide novel evidence on public support for integration initiatives. Specifically, we present…

The author utilized Critical Race Theory (CRT) to examine the passage of the US Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965 in an effort to disrupt the simplistic, uncritical understandings of the US Civil Rights Movement common to school texts while also arguing for the ongoing importance of the VRA in a time when voting rights for people of color are under…

There is a direct link connecting President Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., to the causes of liberty, consent, choice, the least restrictive environment, and genuine community presence for people with intellectual and related developmental disabilities. This article connects the meaning of liberty in those civil rights movements to the…

After decades in the political wilderness, school integration seems poised to make a serious comeback as an education reform strategy. A growing number of parents, university officials, and employers want elementary and secondary schools to better prepare students for the increasingly racially and ethnically diverse society and the global economy.…

When these inequities began to change in the 20th century, due in part to the sweeping court-ordered integration following Brown v. Board of Education and the simultaneous expansion of public colleges and universities, all citizens began to gain access to educational achievement and, as a result, true access to the American power structure. The…

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of neoliberal ideology, and in particular, the economic and social theories of Milton Friedman on education policy. The paper takes a critical theoretical approach in that ultimately the paper is an ideological critique of conservative thought and action that impacts twenty-first century education…

The scholarship of Kenneth B. and Mamie P. Clark, referenced in the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision in "Brown v. Board of Education," emphasized the nation's color line, not only in the Jim Crow South but in American cities overall. The Clarks pointed out the critical role of context; however, they applied it narrowly to the issue…

This paper discusses generally the impact of the Brown decision of 1954 on education. It presents five major "lessons" suggested by the history of school desegregation: (1) the attack on bigotry and injustice must be fought on all fronts--with votes, political interest groups, multicultural education, economic planning, and political…

Thirty years after the Supreme Court's ruling in Brown versus The Board of Education of Topeka, 1954, this paper discusses generally the impact of the Brown decision on education. It presents five major "lessons" suggested by the history of school desegregation. (1) The attack on bigotry and injustice must be fought on all fronts--with…

Analyzes some of the social and philosophical ideas underlying the Brown decision, and asserts that it has had a more positive effect on race relations in other areas of society than in the area of education. Argues that educators must now assume the role of communicating the importance of Brown to the public. (KH)

The Brown decision of 1954 occurred when Blacks, who were migrating into the North in large numbers, became a highly visible political minority. Widespread interest in school integration on the part of the dominant majority stemmed more from a concern about societal integration than about the welfare of disadvantaged children. The Brown decision…

The last few years (2004-05) have been filled with commemoration, reflection, and scholarship around the landmark Supreme Court decision, "Brown v. Board of Education" (1954). It was right and proper to take a 50-year retrospective at one of the more significant court rulings of the 20th century. It was also important to look at the…

Although many school districts and classrooms have desegregated since the 1954 Brown decision, desegregation is neither complete nor uniform. Moreover, racial isolation is growing in some regions and cities, and new forms of separation are arising within desegregated schools. New desegregation strategies and policies are needed, but these will be…