On September 11, 1964, the plaintiffs filed this school desegregation case in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. The plaintiffs, African-American school children by and through their parents, sued the defendant Washington City Board of Education to enjoin the ...
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On September 11, 1964, the plaintiffs filed this school desegregation case in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. The plaintiffs, African-American school children by and through their parents, sued the defendant Washington City Board of Education to enjoin the operation of a segregated school system. They were represented by, among others, Jack Greenberg and Derrick A. Bell (for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund).
On January 27, 1965, the district court (Judge John Larkins) entered a consent decree. By 1966 the plaintiffs requested additional relief. On September 6, 1967, the district court issued an opinion requiring the Board to take further steps to desegregate for the 1967-68 school year, including on student and faculty assignment and on reporting integration statistics. Through early 1968, the defendant Board submitted various amendments to its desegregation plan. On July 24, 1968, Judge Larkins issued an order declaring that the school system had achieved unitary status. The case was ultimately dismissed on January 18, 1972.
Greg Margolis - 02/28/2017
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