Brown's Ethical Argument

In the monumental case Brown v. Board of Education, there were many concrete arguments heard from both the plaintiff and the defendant. Using the six modes of argumentation (legal, historical, ethical, economic, religious, political), my group and I were asked to write an argument each based on one of the six modes. I chose the ethical side, and my argument was as follows:

The establishment of separate public schools for blacks and whites is immensely unethical. If these schools are equal then, really, why must they be separate? Forcing African American to separate themselves from whites will make them feel inferior, which will ultimately lead to pent up frustration and anger. I also argued that these African American children may end up fearing other white children, because they simply would feel like their presence bothers them. Making these children separate themselves will also lead to self-esteem issues.

An example of this would be the case McLaurin v. Oklahoma Board of Regents of Higher Education, in 1950. George McLaurin, an African American man, was admitted to one of the University of Oklahoma’s doctoral programs. Despite his admission, he was required to sit apart from the rest of his class, eat at a separate time and table from white students, and more. McLaurin believed that these actions were unconventional, and they resulted in adverse effects in regards to his academics. He brought this to the Court, and “the Court stated that the University's actions concerning McLaurin were adversely affecting his ability to learn and ordered that they cease immediately.” McLaurin was an older college student when he noticed this unfair treatment. In the case Brown v. Board of Education, middle school children are the ones who are being affected - they may not be able to handle this treatment as well as McLaurin did.

Overall, I find the segregation of children extremely unethical. It was absolutely right of the court to side with Brown. Segregation would have affected the intellectual development of these young children, as well as their self esteem.

http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/history-brown-v-board-education-re-enactment