McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents facts for kids
Quick facts for kids McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents |
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| Argued April 3-4, 1950 Decided June 5, 1950 |
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| Full case name | McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, et al. |
| Citations | 339 U.S. 637 (more)
70 S. Ct. 851; 94 L. Ed. 1149; 1950 U.S. LEXIS 1810
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| Prior history | Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma |
| Holding | |
| Different treatment of students in public institutions of higher learning solely on the basis of race violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. | |
| Court membership | |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Vinson, joined by unanimous |
McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents was an important case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1950. This case made it illegal to separate students by race in graduate or professional schools that were supported by the state. The Supreme Court's decision was unanimous, meaning all the judges agreed. This ruling came out on the same day as another similar case, Sweatt v. Painter.
Contents
About the Case
George McLaurin's Fight for Education
The person who brought this case to court was George W. McLaurin. He already had a master's degree in education. McLaurin wanted to study for a doctorate degree at the University of Oklahoma. However, the university first said he could not join because of his race.
McLaurin then took the university to court. He argued that denying him admission went against his rights under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This amendment says that all citizens should have equal protection under the law.
Separate but Not Equal
At that time, Oklahoma had a law that stopped Black and white students from learning together. The court agreed that the university was violating McLaurin's rights by not letting him attend. So, the court allowed him to join the university.
However, the university still tried to follow the state's segregation law. They admitted McLaurin but made him use separate facilities. For example, he had a special table in the cafeteria. He also had a specific desk in the library. Sometimes, he even had to eat at different times than the other students. In classrooms, he was given a desk just outside the doorway.
McLaurin felt that these separate arrangements were unfair. He went back to the court and asked them to make the university remove these restrictions. He wanted to be able to interact fully with all the other students. But the court said no to his request.
The Supreme Court's Decision
Equal Protection for Students
McLaurin then appealed his case to the Supreme Court of the United States. On June 5, 1950, the Supreme Court made a big decision. They ruled that a public university could not treat a student differently just because of their race. Doing so took away the student's Fourteenth Amendment rights to equal protection.
The Supreme Court ordered the University of Oklahoma to remove all the special rules McLaurin had to follow. This meant he could now learn and interact with all students equally.
Ending Segregation in Higher Education
This case, along with Sweatt v. Painter (which was decided on the same day), was very important. These rulings helped to end the idea of "separate but equal" in graduate and professional education. The "separate but equal" rule came from an older case called Plessy v. Ferguson. It had allowed racial segregation as long as the separate facilities were supposedly equal. McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents showed that even if facilities were separate, they were not truly equal if they caused students to feel inferior or limited their learning experience.
Remembering the Case
In 2001, the Bizzell Memorial Library at the University of Oklahoma was named a U.S. National Historic Landmark. This was done to remember the importance of the McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents case. The case itself was heard in Oklahoma City at the Post Office, Courthouse, and Federal Office Building.
