This case originated to address segregation and discrimination in the railroads of what state: Louisiana. In 1890, Louisiana passed the "Separate Car Act," requiring blacks and whites to ride in separate railroad cars, although the law specified that the accommodations for each race had to be equal. In 1892, Homer Plessy, a mixed-race resident of New Orleans, Louisiana, challenged that act. He sat in a car designated for whites and refused to change cars when a train conductor ordered him to do so. Plessy was arrested, and charged with violating the Separate Car Act.
2. the 14th amendment was a factor in this case, for it deals with "due process" and "equal protection." In denying Plessy's rights based solely on the color of his skin, the act also violated the 14th Amendment, they argued. It did not matter if the accommodations for blacks were equal in quality to those for whites, they asserted; the very act of requiring separate accommodations was discriminatory. They pointed out that the act prohibited passengers from bringing legal action against train conductors or railroads, which they claimed was a violation of the right to "due process under the law" guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, they maintained.
3. what was the impact of the supreme court's decision in the case? Segregation was legal. After the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Separate Car Act, it remanded the case to the lower court, and Plessy had to return to stand trial. On January 11, 1897, he appeared before the criminal district court. He pleaded "guilty" and paid a $25 fine, ending his legal odyssey. With its ruling, the Supreme Court essentially put a stamp of legitimacy on segregation for the first time. "Jim Crow" laws became even more pervasive throughout the South, establishing segregation across all sectors.
