On March 5, 1956, the U.S. Supreme Court issued decisions that continued to support desegregation in public education. These rulings built on the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954. They made it harder for states and localities to delay or evade integration. The Court reaffirmed that “separate but equal” had no place in public education. These decisions gave civil-rights advocates more legal tools to challenge segregation. They also fueled resistance in some southern states, which attempted to slow or block integration through “massive resistance” strategies.
