Special Collection: Featured Historical Cases

Historical b&w photo: Linda Brown Smith, Ethel Louise Belton Brown, Harry Briggs, Jr., and Spottswood Bolling, Jr. during press conference

Linda Brown Smith, Ethel Louise Belton Brown, Harry Briggs, Jr., and Spottswood Bolling, Jr.

New York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper (1964)

This collection gathers a number of civil rights cases of great historical significance for which the Clearinghouse has made a special effort to include a larger-than-typical portion of the documents, and to summarize with a bit more historical context. It includes, for example,

Early school desegregation cases, including Brown v. Board of Education, Milliken v. Bradley (Detroit), Liddell v. Board of Educ. of St. Louis
The earliest (and longest lasting) public housing discrimination case, Gautreaux v. Chicago Housing Authority/Gautreaux v. Hills
The first educational sexual harassment case, Alexander v. Yale
A 1970s housing discrimination lawsuit against the Trumps, United States v. Fred C. Trump, Donald Trump, and Trump Management, Inc.
Among the very first prisoners rights trials, Jordan v. Fitzharris
Early employment discrimination class actions, including U.S. v. IBEW, #38 (against a union), and EEOC, Hodgson, and U.S. v. AT&T (sex discrimination)

We don't have the complete record for these (except for Gautreaux), but we have made significant extra efforts.

See Searchable Results

16 Cases

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT

CODING IN PROCESS

EEOC, Hodgson, and U.S. v. AT&T

2:73-00149 | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Filed Date: 1973

Closed Date: 1979

(There's no summary yet, while we research the case.)

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT

CODING IN PROCESS

United States v. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, #38

67-00575 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio

Filed Date: 1967

[This summary is temporary while we research the case.] This is a lawsuit in which the plaintiffs alleged that a branch of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers had discriminated again…

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PRISON CONDITIONS

Duran v. Martinez

1:77-cv-00721 | U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico

Filed Date: Nov. 15, 1977

Case Ongoing

Prison conditions class action in New Mexico leading to multiple consent decrees and ongoing monitoring (1977-2020).

Alexander v. Yale

3:77-cv-00277 | U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut

Filed Date: July 3, 1977

Closed Date: Sept. 22, 1980

First Title IX sexual harassment lawsuit against Yale University led to new campus grievance procedures (1977-1980).

FAIR HOUSING/LENDING/INSURANCE

United States v. Fred C. Trump, Donald Trump, and Trump Management, Inc.

1:73-01529 | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York

Filed Date: Oct. 15, 1973

Closed Date: June 10, 1977

Housing discrimination lawsuit against Trump properties settled with fair housing reforms.

SCHOOL DESEGREGATION

Liddell v. Board of Education for the City of St. Louis

4:72-cv-00100 | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri

Filed Date: Feb. 18, 1972

Case Ongoing

School desegregation lawsuit in St. Louis led to voluntary student transfer program.

SCHOOL DESEGREGATION

Milliken v. Bradley

2:70-cv-35257 | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

Filed Date: Aug. 18, 1970

Closed Date: Jan. 6, 1995

Major Detroit school desegregation case that led to citywide busing plan and educational reforms (1970-1989).

HEALTHCARE ACCESS AND REPRODUCTIVE ISSUES

70-03690 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas

Filed Date: March 3, 1970

Closed Date: Feb. 26, 1973

[This summary is temporary while we research the case.] In this case challenging Texas criminal abortion statutes, the Supreme Court held that there is a constitutional protection for abortion rights…

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Gautreaux v. Chicago Housing Authority

1:66-cv-01459 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Filed Date: Aug. 9, 1966

Case Ongoing

Chicago public housing racial discrimination lawsuit led to pioneering housing desegregation program (1966-2022).

Gautreaux v. HUD [Weaver, Romney, Hills, etc.]

01:66-cv-01460 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois

Filed Date: Aug. 9, 1966

Closed Date: Aug. 26, 1997

Housing desegregation lawsuit against HUD in Chicago sparked significant public housing reforms nationwide (1966-1997).

PRISON CONDITIONS

Washington v. Lee

66-cv-02350 | U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama

Filed Date: Feb. 18, 1966

Closed Date: 1970

Civil rights lawsuit challenging racial segregation in Alabama prisons led to court-ordered desegregation in 1966.

PRISON CONDITIONS

Jordan v. Fitzharris

65-44786 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California

Filed Date: Oct. 14, 1965

Closed Date: Sept. 6, 1966

Prison conditions lawsuit about unsanitary strip cell led to court-ordered sanitation improvements in California prison.

SCHOOL DESEGREGATION

U.S. v. Jefferson County Bd. of Ed./Stout v. Jefferson County Bd. of Ed.

2:65-cv-00396 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama

Filed Date: June 4, 1965

Case Ongoing

Long-running school desegregation case in Jefferson County, Alabama, that continues under court supervision since 1964.

JUVENILE INSTITUTION

Singleton v. Board of Commissioners

63-cv-00963 | U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida

Filed Date: Nov. 12, 1963

Closed Date: March 5, 1971

Civil rights class action by Black juveniles led to desegregation of Florida reform schools (1963-1971).

SCHOOL DESEGREGATION

Lee v. Macon County Bd. of Ed.

3:63-cv-00604 | U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama

Filed Date: Jan. 28, 1963

Closed Date: 1970

Major Alabama school desegregation lawsuit led to statewide integration orders and reforms (1963-1970).

SCHOOL DESEGREGATION

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

5:51-cv-04316 | U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas

Filed Date: Feb. 28, 1951

Closed Date: July 27, 1999

School segregation lawsuit in Topeka ended racial separation in public schools.