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1961 Press Photo - A.P. Tureaud and Jack Greenburg NAACP in LA case for schools to be integrated or not be in session
St. Helena Parish schools were not considered integrated until January 6, 1989, more than four decades after the passing of Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. School segregation ended because the system could no longer keep the separate schools running, with many of the buildings falling into disrepair. Under a plan approved by U.S. District Judge John Victor Parker in Baton Rouge, classes from seven segregated schools were consolidated into three buildings. Judge Parker's 1989 decision ended a lawsuit first filed in 1952 by resident John Hall and the NAACP, who sued the city when he was told by the school district that there was not enough money to furnish a new school and instead, he and other black residents would have to build one to replace an inferior facility.
A court ruling on April 5, 2016, declaring that St. Helena Parish Public School District had obtained equal status in all areas except student assignment. On Feb. 15, 2018, all parties to the litigation filed a joint motion seeking dismissal of the action and a declaration that the school district has achieved full unitary status. This morning, Chief U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson granted the joint motion, dissolving all injunctions emanating from the action and dismissing the matter with prejudice.
From the US Department of Justice - 2018 Press Release
Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and United States Attorney Brandon Fremin for the Middle District of Louisiana announced today the successful resolution of the oldest current school desegregation case in the State of Louisiana, involving the St. Helena Parish Public School District.
In 1952, Robert Carter and others filed this action asserting that the St. Helena Parish School Board was operating in a racially dual system in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The Justice Department subsequently joined the litigation as a plaintiff-intervenor in 1961. The case predated the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. The complaint under which this historic lawsuit was commenced was signed by Thurgood Marshall before he was seated on the Supreme Court.
On May 20, 1960, the Court entered an order enjoining the State of Louisiana, including the St. Helena Parish School Board, from excluding African-American students from public schools because of their race. Since then, the U.S. District Court has overseen the school district’s efforts to comply with the 1960 order and further orders mandating the desegregation of its schools. Such oversight would continue until the school district achieved unitary status, a milestone it recently reached.
Judge James J. Brady issued a ruling on April 5, 2016, declaring that St. Helena Parish Public School District had obtained unitary status in all areas except student assignment. On Feb. 15, 2018, all parties to the litigation filed a joint motion seeking dismissal of the action and a declaration that the school district has achieved full unitary status. This morning, Chief U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson granted the joint motion, dissolving all injunctions emanating from the action and dismissing the matter with prejudice.
“We commend the St. Helena Parish School District for satisfying its remaining obligations in this case and ensuring equal educational opportunities for all students,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division. “We have been pleased to work with the district to resolve outstanding issues and bring the case to a successful close.”
“Today is a historic day for all the people of St. Helena Parish," said U.S. Attorney Brandon Fremin. "The road to desegregating our schools has undoubtedly been challenging and marked by great difficulties, but it is a road that had to be traveled, both legally and morally. I commend Chief Judge Jackson and his predecessors, including the late Judges Brady and Parker, as well as the parties and their attorneys, for their collective dedication to this important and historic matter.”
This matter was handled by Franz Marshall and Christopher Awad of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice as well as Assistant United States Attorney John Gaupp, who serves as the Chief of the Civil Division of the United States Attorney’s Office.
Promoting school desegregation and enforcing Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
A court ruling on April 5, 2016, declaring that St. Helena Parish Public School District had obtained equal status in all areas except student assignment. On Feb. 15, 2018, all parties to the litigation filed a joint motion seeking dismissal of the action and a declaration that the school district has achieved full unitary status. This morning, Chief U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson granted the joint motion, dissolving all injunctions emanating from the action and dismissing the matter with prejudice.
From the US Department of Justice - 2018 Press Release
Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and United States Attorney Brandon Fremin for the Middle District of Louisiana announced today the successful resolution of the oldest current school desegregation case in the State of Louisiana, involving the St. Helena Parish Public School District.
In 1952, Robert Carter and others filed this action asserting that the St. Helena Parish School Board was operating in a racially dual system in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The Justice Department subsequently joined the litigation as a plaintiff-intervenor in 1961. The case predated the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. The complaint under which this historic lawsuit was commenced was signed by Thurgood Marshall before he was seated on the Supreme Court.
On May 20, 1960, the Court entered an order enjoining the State of Louisiana, including the St. Helena Parish School Board, from excluding African-American students from public schools because of their race. Since then, the U.S. District Court has overseen the school district’s efforts to comply with the 1960 order and further orders mandating the desegregation of its schools. Such oversight would continue until the school district achieved unitary status, a milestone it recently reached.
Judge James J. Brady issued a ruling on April 5, 2016, declaring that St. Helena Parish Public School District had obtained unitary status in all areas except student assignment. On Feb. 15, 2018, all parties to the litigation filed a joint motion seeking dismissal of the action and a declaration that the school district has achieved full unitary status. This morning, Chief U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson granted the joint motion, dissolving all injunctions emanating from the action and dismissing the matter with prejudice.
“We commend the St. Helena Parish School District for satisfying its remaining obligations in this case and ensuring equal educational opportunities for all students,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division. “We have been pleased to work with the district to resolve outstanding issues and bring the case to a successful close.”
“Today is a historic day for all the people of St. Helena Parish," said U.S. Attorney Brandon Fremin. "The road to desegregating our schools has undoubtedly been challenging and marked by great difficulties, but it is a road that had to be traveled, both legally and morally. I commend Chief Judge Jackson and his predecessors, including the late Judges Brady and Parker, as well as the parties and their attorneys, for their collective dedication to this important and historic matter.”
This matter was handled by Franz Marshall and Christopher Awad of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice as well as Assistant United States Attorney John Gaupp, who serves as the Chief of the Civil Division of the United States Attorney’s Office.
Promoting school desegregation and enforcing Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a top priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
