Imagine living in a country where your skin colour determined which water fountain you could drink from, which door you entered a building through, which schools your children attended, and whether you could vote. This was reality for Black Americans in the South until the 1960s. Jim Crow laws (state laws named after a racist caricature that enforced racial separation in all public life) enforced strict separation of races in every aspect of life. The 1896 Supreme Court case Plessy v Ferguson had ruled this was legal as long as facilities were "separate but equal" — but they were never equal.
This introduction covers What Was Life Like Under Segregation? within Segregation for GCSE History. Revise Segregation in America 1920-1973 for GCSE History with 12 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic appears less often, but it can still be a useful differentiator on mixed-topic papers. It is section 1 of 13 in this topic. Use this introduction to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Practice questions for Segregation
What did the Supreme Court rule in the case of Plessy v Ferguson in 1896?
Which of the following methods was used to prevent Black Americans from voting in the South?
Quick recall flashcards
Who was Emmett Till?
14-year-old Black boy murdered in Mississippi 1955 for allegedly whistling at a white woman — open casket funeral seen by 50,000; catalysed civil rights movement
What were Jim Crow laws?
State laws enforcing racial segregation in the South