Informational Text Article with Questions on the case of Homer Adolph Plessy vs. The State of Louisiana. In June of 1892, a 30-year-old man named Homer Plessy was jailed for sitting in the "white" section of a railroad car. Plessy was only one-eighth black, but under Louisiana law was considered “colored,” and therefore was required to sit in the "colored car." In Homer Adolph Plessy vs. The State of Louisiana, Plessy argued that the separation violated the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution. John Howard Ferguson, a lawyer from Massachusetts and acting judge for the Plessy case, found Plessy guilty of refusing to leave the “white car.” The case went all the way to the United States Supreme Court, and the decision would perpetuate the already popular Jim Crow laws.
Students are given a brief overview of the story of the case, as well as an abridged list of Jim Crow laws by state, followed by comprehension questions. Use as a supplemental activity for your To Kill a Mockingbird unit, or as part of your social studies/history unit. Includes Answer Key.
Includes both PRINTABLE and DIGITAL VERSIONS for Distance Learning and In-Person Classrooms.