Plessy V. Ferguson: A Brief History with Documents

The book contains a good analysis of the Plessy v. Ferguson case, decided by the United States Supreme Court, and establishing the doctrine of "separate but equal" that would remain the law of land until overturned in 1954. Minor criticism: the cover illustration shows a low-class white attempting to evict a well-dressed black man from his seat on a train. The picture has nothing to do with Plessy v. Ferguson. First of all, Homer Plessy was only 1/8 black, and it was not noticeable to the uninformed observer. Secondly, as material inside the book indicates, the picture depicts an incident that occurred in Pennsylvania in 1856 (40 years before the Plessy decision). Finally, strange as it may seem today, racial segregation was supported by all strata of Southern society (and a good many folks in the North too). It was just the way things were done, and no one really thought much about it. Except for the cover illustration, a great book, and all serious students of constitutional history should read it.

Brook Thomas is an English professor, not a legal scholar, and, although much of his work deals with intersections between law and literature, he tends to be more discerning as to literature and social issues than regarding the law. While his Plessy v. Ferguson gives a competent overview of the case and its context, this book is not his strongest work by a long shot. I have had success teaching this book in conjunction with Twain's Pudd'n'head Wilson, and its brief documentary history works well to get students up to speed. But it has a distinctly text-bookish quality that would make it something of a drag in any but the classroom setting.

Thomas has done yeoman service in his editing of this volume on the Plessy v Ferguson case. Sure, we all know "separate but euqal," but there was so much more, and Thomas covers it succinctly and completely. As part of the Bedford Series in History and Culture this volume looks at Plessy through a collection of original period documents with thoughtful, but to-the-point analytical introductions. Within a small number of pages is included not only the entire opinion of the Court, but also legal and social backgrounds for the case and race relations in America. Also covered in the volume are reactions to the case from general newspapers, the legal community, and African American intellectuals, and the impact of the case as seen from the first decade of the 20th century. It even has a wonderful timeline of pertinent events to help orient the progress of the case. It will probably not be fascinating to the casual reader of history-if your tastes tend more to the straight narrative, you may find this volume frustrating. But if you want to really understand Plessy's "separate but equal" argument and where it came from, this is the volume for you.