Dissent of Justice John Marshall Harlan

In our second mock trial, our case was Plessy v. Ferguson. Plessy was a man that considered himself to be “seven-eighths Caucasian and one-eighth African blood” though he presented himself as a proud black man. Plessy is allegedly arrested for sitting in a white train car and is sent to the United States Supreme Court to undergo trial. In his trial, he argued that the Louisiana segregation law violated his civil freedom and the 14th amendment’s Equal Protection Clause. While the whole Supreme court argued the decision that justified the constitutionality of racial segregation by the "Separate but equal" doctrine. Meaning that Plessy’s civil freedom rights were not violated since they had a car for African Americans as well. There was only one man that objected. Justice John Marshall Harlan, the dissent of the case. He objected the Louisiana statute should not stand.

For under this statute they are regulating a seat on a train on the basis of color, neither the passengers nor the railroad that carries them has any discretion in the premises. How can a fine be imposed on a passenger if they merely move to a non-assigned car? Imprisonment for sitting in an unassigned seat? That this was an injustice. That we have a state regulating highways of transport by race. We only need and should look at the Constitution for guidance; Rights are granted to all citizens of the United States of America. The 14th amendment guarantees that all natural-born citizens are protected. The constitution does not care what color that citizen is. Personal liberty is to be enjoyed by all American citizens. He wrote, "in the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens. There is no caste here". The constitution is color blind there is no caste system to be established here, and there are no legal grounds for this statute's justification.

It is not consistent with civil freedom. He fears for the future based on this law; that the two races in this country are linked together. He tries to explain that if this statute stands the seeds of hate are planted in this law. Separate is not equal, it builds distrust. Equality is not separated! That this day will be judged poorly in American history. He wrote, “In the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens. There is no caste here”.  This thinly veiled attempt at approval for segregation will not mislead anyone, it will not atone for what the court has just done. 

This case is considered an indicator of what he said since the United case Supreme Court ruled that the court's decision of racial segregation laws never violated the U.S. Constitution. Since Ferguson won this case and Plessy got thrown in jail. For the next half-century, people upheld Ferguson's decision for justifying racial segregation. They created a system where they justified segregation with trains, hotels, schools, and many other public facilities. Where racial mistreatment continued for years. 

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