Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality
The 1954 Supreme Court ruling in the case of Brown v. Board of Education brought centuries of legal segregation in this country to an end. It was and remains, beyond question, one of the truly significant events in American history, “probably the most important American government act of any kind since the Emancipation Proclamation,” in the view of constitutional scholar Louis H. Pollak. The Brown decision climaxed a long, torturous battle for black equality in education, making hard law out of vague principles and opening the way for the broad civil rights upheavals of the 1960s and beyond.
Simple Justice is the story of that battle. Richard Kluger traces the background of the epochal decision, from its remote legal and cultural roots to the complex personalities of those who brought about its realization. The result is a landmark work of popular history, graceful and fascinatingly detailed, the panoramic account of a struggle for human dignity in process since the birth of the nation.
Here is the human drama, told in all its dimensions, of the many plaintiffs, men, women, and children, variously scared or defiant but always determined, who made the hard decision to proceed – bucking the white power structure in Topeka, Kansas; braving night riders in rural South Carolina; rallying fellow high school students in strictly segregated Prince Edward County, Virginia – and at a dozen other times and places showing their refusal to accept defeat.
Here, too, is the extraordinary tale, told for the first time, of the black legal establishment, forced literally to invent itself before it could join the fight, then patiently assembling, in courtroom after courtroom, a body of law that would serve to free its people from thralldom to unjust laws. Heroes abound, some obscure, like Charles Houston (who built Howard Law School into a rigorous academy for black lawyers) and the Reverend J.A. DeLaine (the minister-teacher who, despite bitter opposition, organized and led the first crucial fight for educational equality in the Jim Crow South), others like Thurgood Marshall, justly famous – but all of whose passionate devotion proved intense enough to match their mission.
Reading Simple Justice, we see how black Americans’ groundswell urge for fair treatment collides with the intransigence of white supremacists in a grinding legal campaign that inevitably found its way to the halls and chambers of the Supreme Court for a final showdown. Kluger searches out and analyzes what went on there during the months of hearings and deliberations, often behind closed doors, laying bare the doubts, disagreements, and often deeply held convictions of the nine Justices. He shows above all how Chief Justice Earl Warren, new to the Court but old in the ways of politics, achieved the impossible – a unanimous decision to reverse the 58-year-old false doctrine of “separate but equal” education for blacks. Impeccably researched and elegantly written, this may be the most revealing report ever published of America’s highest court at work.
Based on extensive interviews and both published and unpublished documentary sources, Simple Justice has the lineaments of an epic. It will stand as the classic study of a turning point in our history.
I read this book in college, as a class requirement, and I approached it as work rather then enjoyment. It was a long book but it was very well written, (felt a bit like a novel), so it wasn't a burden and I really enjoyed it. The author was able to give all the facts without leaving out the emotion and making the entire book not just a history lesson, but a story that many people would enjoy reading. If I ever get the time I would love to read this again so that I may truly appreciate the
The very problem that might induce hesitancy to write a history of a judicial decision as notable as Brown v. Board of Educationnamely, that people might tend towards mistaking their general awareness of the case for an understanding of its compelxities, nuances, and contextis the exact reason that makes its writing so essential. Kluger reports the details of the case and its background in painstaking detail, revealing the herky-jerky progress of the African American pursuit of equality in
Great book maybe a little too much detail - but still a very interesting read!
This is an extraordinarily readable account of the long battle to desegregate public schools, although the implications were much more far-reaching than that. Kluger manages to make what could have been a dry, legalistic report into a gripping story of courage and determination. His portraits of the main characters, of the lawyers, the plaintiffs and those who resisted change, are sympathetic and three-dimensional. He writes vivdly about the lengths to which both sides went to present their
Why try to sum it up myself, when the author does a perfect job at the end of the book:"Exorcism is rarely a pretty spectacle. It is frequently marked by violent spasms and protracted trauma, and so it has been in the two decades since Brown signaled the beginning of the nation's effort to rid itself of the consuming demons of racism...the bruising post-Brown years have clearly marked the onset of the third major stage in the history of black-white relations in America.During the first, blacks
This is an excellent book. Definitely going on my favorites of all time read list. Its so good in fact that this work should be required reading for high school students in social studies/government/ civics class. It explores the following ideas:A concise look at slavery in America up to the civil war. It continues with a look at reconstruction and segregation especially focused on the southern states. A biography of the prominent lawyers at the NAACP involved with the brown lawsuits including
Richard Kluger
Paperback | Pages: 880 pages Rating: 4.42 | 607 Users | 60 Reviews
Specify Based On Books Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality
Title | : | Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality |
Author | : | Richard Kluger |
Book Format | : | Paperback |
Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
Pages | : | Pages: 880 pages |
Published | : | April 13th 2004 by Vintage (first published December 12th 1975) |
Categories | : | History. Law. Nonfiction. North American Hi.... American History. Politics |
Representaion Conducive To Books Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality
Simple Justice is generally regarded as the classic account of the U.S. Supreme Court’s epochal decision outlawing racial segregation and the centerpiece of African-Americans’ ongoing crusade for equal justice under law.The 1954 Supreme Court ruling in the case of Brown v. Board of Education brought centuries of legal segregation in this country to an end. It was and remains, beyond question, one of the truly significant events in American history, “probably the most important American government act of any kind since the Emancipation Proclamation,” in the view of constitutional scholar Louis H. Pollak. The Brown decision climaxed a long, torturous battle for black equality in education, making hard law out of vague principles and opening the way for the broad civil rights upheavals of the 1960s and beyond.
Simple Justice is the story of that battle. Richard Kluger traces the background of the epochal decision, from its remote legal and cultural roots to the complex personalities of those who brought about its realization. The result is a landmark work of popular history, graceful and fascinatingly detailed, the panoramic account of a struggle for human dignity in process since the birth of the nation.
Here is the human drama, told in all its dimensions, of the many plaintiffs, men, women, and children, variously scared or defiant but always determined, who made the hard decision to proceed – bucking the white power structure in Topeka, Kansas; braving night riders in rural South Carolina; rallying fellow high school students in strictly segregated Prince Edward County, Virginia – and at a dozen other times and places showing their refusal to accept defeat.
Here, too, is the extraordinary tale, told for the first time, of the black legal establishment, forced literally to invent itself before it could join the fight, then patiently assembling, in courtroom after courtroom, a body of law that would serve to free its people from thralldom to unjust laws. Heroes abound, some obscure, like Charles Houston (who built Howard Law School into a rigorous academy for black lawyers) and the Reverend J.A. DeLaine (the minister-teacher who, despite bitter opposition, organized and led the first crucial fight for educational equality in the Jim Crow South), others like Thurgood Marshall, justly famous – but all of whose passionate devotion proved intense enough to match their mission.
Reading Simple Justice, we see how black Americans’ groundswell urge for fair treatment collides with the intransigence of white supremacists in a grinding legal campaign that inevitably found its way to the halls and chambers of the Supreme Court for a final showdown. Kluger searches out and analyzes what went on there during the months of hearings and deliberations, often behind closed doors, laying bare the doubts, disagreements, and often deeply held convictions of the nine Justices. He shows above all how Chief Justice Earl Warren, new to the Court but old in the ways of politics, achieved the impossible – a unanimous decision to reverse the 58-year-old false doctrine of “separate but equal” education for blacks. Impeccably researched and elegantly written, this may be the most revealing report ever published of America’s highest court at work.
Based on extensive interviews and both published and unpublished documentary sources, Simple Justice has the lineaments of an epic. It will stand as the classic study of a turning point in our history.
Particularize Books Supposing Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality
Original Title: | Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality |
ISBN: | 1400030617 (ISBN13: 9781400030613) |
Edition Language: | English |
Characters: | Thurgood Marshall |
Literary Awards: | Anisfield-Wolf Book Award (1977), National Book Critics Circle Award Nominee for General Nonfiction (1976), National Book Award Finalist for History (1977), Lillian Smith Book Award (1977) |
Rating Based On Books Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality
Ratings: 4.42 From 607 Users | 60 ReviewsEvaluate Based On Books Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality
I typically resent having reading assigned for a class. Especially when the professor assigns upwards of 150 pages a week, which eats into my personal reading time. But, I did not mind in the slightest with Simple Justice. It was well-written, intriguing, and provided great insight to what it takes to strategically position an important issue in the court system so that the Supreme Court takes it up at the right time and addresses the exact question that you want addressed.The scope of this bookI read this book in college, as a class requirement, and I approached it as work rather then enjoyment. It was a long book but it was very well written, (felt a bit like a novel), so it wasn't a burden and I really enjoyed it. The author was able to give all the facts without leaving out the emotion and making the entire book not just a history lesson, but a story that many people would enjoy reading. If I ever get the time I would love to read this again so that I may truly appreciate the
The very problem that might induce hesitancy to write a history of a judicial decision as notable as Brown v. Board of Educationnamely, that people might tend towards mistaking their general awareness of the case for an understanding of its compelxities, nuances, and contextis the exact reason that makes its writing so essential. Kluger reports the details of the case and its background in painstaking detail, revealing the herky-jerky progress of the African American pursuit of equality in
Great book maybe a little too much detail - but still a very interesting read!
This is an extraordinarily readable account of the long battle to desegregate public schools, although the implications were much more far-reaching than that. Kluger manages to make what could have been a dry, legalistic report into a gripping story of courage and determination. His portraits of the main characters, of the lawyers, the plaintiffs and those who resisted change, are sympathetic and three-dimensional. He writes vivdly about the lengths to which both sides went to present their
Why try to sum it up myself, when the author does a perfect job at the end of the book:"Exorcism is rarely a pretty spectacle. It is frequently marked by violent spasms and protracted trauma, and so it has been in the two decades since Brown signaled the beginning of the nation's effort to rid itself of the consuming demons of racism...the bruising post-Brown years have clearly marked the onset of the third major stage in the history of black-white relations in America.During the first, blacks
This is an excellent book. Definitely going on my favorites of all time read list. Its so good in fact that this work should be required reading for high school students in social studies/government/ civics class. It explores the following ideas:A concise look at slavery in America up to the civil war. It continues with a look at reconstruction and segregation especially focused on the southern states. A biography of the prominent lawyers at the NAACP involved with the brown lawsuits including
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