Americans should celebrate path to equality

Bill Corrigan is president of The Missouri Bar.

The law is a reflection of who we are and what we aspire to as a nation. Law Day, May 1, was a time to celebrate the immense progress in human rights that our laws make possible. It also was a time to shake the complacency from our lives and rededicate ourselves to the principles that make our country great.

From the earliest days of our nation's existence, the intertwined concepts of justice and equality have been fundamental parts of America's identity. Indeed, the Declaration of Independence the brilliantly-crafted document that boldly proclaimed the birth of a new nation committed to justice for all proclaims: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

While the 228 years since the Declaration of Independence have seen both enormous achievements and crushing setbacks along the path to equality for all Americans, it is clear that our nation's justice system has played a crucial role in the struggle. "Through law and the courts," an American Bar Association publication recently opined, "one group of Americans after another has redefined equality.'" As a result of their efforts, we are a better nation and a better people.

On May 1, the nation's legal community joined all Americans in celebrating Law Day, a day set aside by a 1958 joint resolution of Congress to demonstrate that "respect for the law is the key to individual freedom and justice."

This year's Law Day observances were particularly meaningful as the nation marked two landmark events in the fight for equality the 50th anniversary of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kan., and the 40th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Separate but equal'

One of the worst setbacks in affirming our nation's commitment to equality took place in 1896, when the United States Supreme Court, in the case of Plessy vs. Ferguson, established the legal doctrine of "separate but equal." The 20th century began with a court decision that segregation was acceptable if the separate facilities provided for blacks were equal to those provided for whites.

The practical effect of this decision was to sanction the enactment of "Jim Crow laws" by individual states that enforced segregation of blacks and other people of color from many public facilities. Public schools, transportation facilities, residential neighborhoods, public and private theaters, restaurants, restrooms and drinking fountains were often designed for the exclusive use of "whites" while separate but usually unequal facilities were set aside for "coloreds."

It would be almost 60 years before the United States Supreme Court would correct the injustice of its decision in Plessy.

Brown vs. Board of Education

In Brown, the plaintiffs were African-American children of elementary school age who were denied enrollment in the public schools of Topeka, Kan. Their parents sued the local board of education to prohibit enforcement of a Kansas statute which permitted (but did not require) cities with a population of 15,000 or more to maintain separate schools for black and white students.

The case eventually made its way to the United States Supreme Court. In a unanimous decision on May 17, 1954, the court overturned Plessy and declared that segregation of public schools was unconstitutional.

A year later, the Supreme Court decided Brown vs. Board of Education (II), which held that integration of school districts should take place "with all deliberate speed."

Despite these companion decisions by the United States Supreme Court, desegregation in public schools and elsewhere remained a slow or virtually nonexistent process.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

In the spring of 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders led sit-ins and protest marches in Birmingham, Ala., to protest segregation and job discrimination against African-Americans. These protests prompted a brutal response by police, which was captured on television and broadcast around the world. The events in Birmingham shocked many Americans and caused a wave of protests in cities across the United States.

In response to the protests, President John F. Kennedy in June 1963 eloquently challenged the nation in a nationally televised address:

"We are confronted primarily with a moral issue. It is as old as the Scriptures and is as clear as the American Constitution. The heart of the question is whether all Americans are to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities. . . . (The) time has come for this nation to fulfill its promise."

Although Kennedy would not live to see it come to pass, Congress enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The most far-reaching and important civil rights legislation in our nation's history, the act outlawed discrimination in hotels, restaurants, theaters and other places of public accommodation. The act also gave the government new authority to bring about school integration and reduce job discrimination by businesses and labor unions.

While the act did not eradicate discrimination, it significantly improved the quality of life for African-Americans and other minority groups by reducing racial restrictions in the use of public facilities, increasing job opportunities and strengthening the voting laws.

A time to celebrate, and keep working

While the promise of the Brown decision and the 1964 Civil Rights Act has not been fully realized, there has been dramatic improvement in civil rights in the past 50 years.

The national theme for Law Day 2004 was "To Win Equality by Law: Brown v. Board at 50." This year is an especially appropriate time for all of us to reflect on the progress our nation has made toward fulfilling the mandate of equality for all of its citizens. It also is important that we remember that prejudice still survives in our midst, but it does so outside the law. While the law cannot change what is in the hearts of some, it can change our behavior. Likewise, the law cannot erase a painful and unjust past, but it can envision and help build a more just future.