Thursday, November 3, 2011

Separate But Equal

One of the major issues following Plessy v. Ferguson was the idea that "separate but equal" facilities was socially acceptable.  The problem was that there was really no way possible to ensure that facilities could be equal, and in fact the white facilities were always better.  Do you think if the accommodations were "truly equal" that laws like these could be valid or acceptable?  Think about schools, hospitals, restaurants, movie theaters--even water fountains!!!!

60 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that it would be okay, because then both black and white men cant feel superior to the other, because they have no benefit over the other. The white men can no longer think of black men as 2nd class men because they have nothing over them.

Anonymous said...

I think that the idea "separate but equal" is not acceptable because people should not be separated because of their skin color. Separating white and black people wastes a lot of money because you need to have two of everything. I think that all people should have the right to go or sit where ever the please. There is no true logical reason that African Americans and white people should be separated, therefore i believe that laws like this is un-acceptable.

Mac said...

Even if the facilities were truly equal it wouldn't make much of a difference because the whites would still discriminate against the blacks

Haley said...
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Haley said...

I think that even "truly equal" could every be considered as valid or acceptable. Even if public facilities were equal there would still be prejudice against them, there would always think of them in disgust. Whites would always treat them like second class people..... Do you think it would make a difference??

Daniel Berger said...

I think if the facilities were truly equal, then it possibly could be acceptable but if there was a person of either race who need for instance, medical help, they would be able to go to the opposite race's hospital.

Dylan Wit said...

In my opinion, I do not agree on the idea of "separate but equal." If you separate whites from blacks, you are taking away African Americans freedom to sit, eat, drink, WHEREVER they want. And that is not fair.

Molly E. said...

Probably not, because whites never forgave the A.A's for being different. The whites consider them to be role models on how "you should be living", but wait.. so wait they are saying is that the way to live is to go through so much trouble to make someones life terrible just because someone is born a different skin color. Also, they are saying that these people who are "different" have no right to live their life the way someone should because they are "different", we are only human we cant all be perfect, so i guess this was all unnecessary because all the A.A's were trying to do was live their life. The whites were living their lives too, so why is it that the A.A's cant live their life because they are "different" or because they want a normal life.

Molly E. said...

Also, to add on to my other comment. Why should the A.A's apologize for being who they are? I don't see any difference between an A.A and a white person. The fact that they what they are doing is a great way to treat the A.A's "equally", is just sad. Also, the fact that they had to go to a separate water fountain to get a drink, is sad because doesn't everyone deserve the same fill when they are thirsty?

Connor Howe said...

I believe that it would be equal if both white and blacks had the same accommodations it would be equal. It would be equal because then no one would be complaining that one gets treated differently or better than the other, and that one would not be superior to another. Although there are some senses if this would not be equal because if one race was very thirsty or needed immediate medical attention they would head to the nearest hospital or water fountain regardless if it said black or white.

Anonymous said...

i think that if they were really equal then yes it would be ok because the feeling of superiority would go away due to the fact that the facilities and teachers were equal. the White man could no longer think he is superior if he is in an equal facility himself

Anonymous said...

believe that if the facilities were truly equal, then it could be acceptable to american society. But it could never be really be the same. For example, you can't have to same teacher and the same restaurants and movie theaters. It could be really close but will could never be the same. Also, by separating races, if something turned out that it wasn't the" same" or close to the same, there would be a major dispute.

Anonymous said...

I do not think it would be okay, even if the facilities were equal. I believe this because the idea of segregation is still there, no matter how equal the seperate places are. Besides, just because the facilities are equal doesn't mean the problem has gone away. If anything, equal facilities would cause more racial predjuce between blacks and whites. In conclusion, I definitely don't think equal facilities would make segregation okay.

Anonymous said...

If the accommodations were equal, the laws would not be acceptable. People should not be separated due to their skin color. If the facilities were equal, I think that the whites would still discriminate against the African Americans.

tyler said...

The idea of "seprate but equal" is not acceptable the schools hospitals waiting rooms and even schools were not equal. The idea of segragation is wrong.I think true equality can only be found if there wasn't segragation due to skin color

Anonymous said...

I think the idea of separate but equal is not acceptable because people should not be separated because of their skin color or race. I think people regardless of skin color should be able to sit where they choose on a bus, go anywhere they please, or even drink out of the same water fountain as anyone else. Also, it would be much more difficult needing to have two of everything, one for whites, one for African Americans. I dont not believe laws like this are acceptable because there is no real reason that African Americans and whites should be separated.

mlopatynsky said...

I think that the "separate but equal" accommodations were not equal because the white facilities were better and colored people were not able to enter the facilities. Also, colored schools did not have much funding as the white schools, and they got the hand me down books from white schools. Also, the colored hospitals were very unsanitary and the white hospitals refused to take care of colored people. So to summarize, these "truly equal" accommodations were actually not equal at all.

Anonymous said...

I think that the idea "seperate but equal" is not acceptable because you wold need two of everthing wich is a bid waste of money. Everyone should just stay together and save money.

Anonymous said...

I think that the idea "seperate but equal" is not acceptable because you wold need two of everthing wich is a bid waste of money. Everyone should just stay together and save money.

Gregory Lopatynsky said...

I think that the idea of having truly equal facilities for blacks and whites would be acceptable because then whites would not be superior to blacks. Though I think that the idea is acceptable, I do not think it is justifiable because it is not right to seperate people based on their skin color.

Jack C said...

I think that "separate but equal" is not acceptable at all, because African Americans should not have any different facilities such as schools, restaurants, water fountains etc. than whites. Now they would just both be superior to each other. But i do think that even if the whites and blacks did use the same facilities that there would be arguments and maybe even if a white man or woman was going to a restaurant or water fountain and this person saw a black man or woman that maybe that white person would not even go near it until that black person left. So I think that even if this problem baned that it would not be any different than it was in the beginning.

zachary goligoski said...

The idea "separate but equal" is not socially acceptable because it would divide the citizens of the United States. This defeats the whole purpose of the United States of America. Even if the facilities were truly equal, it would still separate people racially based on their skin color. This would be hindering to everybody because it would force everyone to pay for brand new expensive stuff. This is why I think that "separate but equal" is not socially acceptable.

Sabrina said...

I think that the idea "separate but equal" should not be acceptable because it is still discriminating against the blacks. Why should blacks be separated from whites just because of the way they look?

Jack B. said...

i believe that the accommodations were not equal because there is practically no way to truly create two things equally. there will always be a flaw. This system would further separate the whites and blacks from each other, thus destroying the bond that was trying to be built.

Matt Ch said...

I think that these laws would be more acceptable, but not really an intelligent thing to do. If the facilities are equal, than what is the point of making two of all these things? It is just more time wasted and money burned.

Anonymous said...

I disagree with the idea of "separate but equal" because there is absolutely no point of discriminating against the blacks. Why should the African Americans be looked at differently then Whites? Because of their skin? The Blacks should have the right to do anything the Whites get to do. Even if the accommodations were "truly equal", laws like these should not be not valid and not acceptable. There is no reason at all why Blacks and Whites should be separated.

Lauren Gimpel said...

I don't think that the idea of "separate but equal" is acceptable because no matter how equal the separate facilities may be, no one should be judged, classified, or separated by their skin color. Additionally, no matter how equal the two facilities may be, blacks would still be discriminated against, and therefore, make then "lower" than whites.

Katie said...

I think the "separate but equal" law is not right because people should not be separated because of the color of their skin. Separating whites and blacks with having the exact same classroom (for example) costs a lot of money. People should be able to sit wherever they want to. It is so stupid to have a law saying where blacks and whites can sit! I think there is really no explanation why there was this law and there is no excuse why this was so called "right". Therefore I believe that this law is a waste of a law and is totally unacceptable.

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

If the acommadodations were truly equal stated by Plessy vs Ferguson, in terms of hospitals, public schools, trains, and movie theaters, there still would be complaints from both the black and the white communities. Lets face it, the Civil War was fought over slavery. African-Americans became the escape goats for one of the most bloodiest war in history. Even though the radical republicans issued the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment to help former slaves and blacks to be apart of the American Government; however, it was the KKK, southern hatred and the northern racism that allowed Plessy vs Ferguson to go so unchallenged. American racism was bigger than American equality. The ideas of America is to make things equal not separate.

Anonymous said...

I believe the "seperate but equal" idea is not acceptable because blacks and whites will still be seperated because of their skin color. Even if schools, waterfountains etc... were equal blacks would still be discriminated against. So in my opinion it dosen't make a difference.

Brad Kaptinski said...

The idea "separate but equal" is not right because blacks should not be judged based on the color of their skin. Next, the idea "separate but equal" is not true because even though the class room are the same the teachers are still different and they teach the material in a different way. Another example of this is in a movie theatre where blacks had reserved seats. The idea "separate but equal" was a good idea to try and show how blacks and whites are equal but i believe the blacks should be able to go and sit wherever they please.

EricK said...

First off, I don't believe the accommodations could ever be "truly equal". If they were though, I suppose these laws would be "fair", although, I don't think it would reflect well on America as a whole. Also, it just wouldn't make sense economically because you would need more of same fascilities, so the two races would be separated but still equal. The whole concept of "separate but equal" is pointless and in no way does it effect society positively.

Tyler Holtz said...

Yes, because it wouldn't be like the African Americans were being treated worse, both would be the same, it's just the Whites and the African Americans just wouldn't interact with each other. Which isn't all that bad considering back then both races didn't like the other.

Anonymous said...

I think that even if the facilities were really equal they would still be wrong. Blacks and whites should not be separated and whites would still try to find a way to discriminate against blacks.

Anonymous said...

I think "separate but equal" is not acceptable at all because the government should not being telling people it is ok to discriminated by peoples skin color. In addition, i feel that blacks should be able to sit where they want, or go to the same schools, or go to the same restaurants and movie theaters, and even drink out of the same water fountain. The black are not "truly equal" to whites and will not be unless the government does something about this issue.

Anonymous said...

I think the "separate but equal" facilities were a waste. They wasted a lot of money, considering you have to have two of everything. Plus, people do not need to separated for any reason. People are people. We are not all the same, yet we are all equal.

Anonymous said...

If these laws were truly equal then in my opinion they would not be acceptable because it would kill the economy because they would have to purchase two of everything they had, which would ruin the community. On the contrary it would be good because blacks would now not considered 2nd class because they had the same things as blacks. Also territorial fights would break out between both whites and blacks.

Anonymous said...

I believe that if facilities would allow both whites and african americans, there would still be a lot of discrimination against one another. also if whites and African Americans are separated I believe that is not truly equal and for them to become equal would be to share for example, schools and hospitals.

Anonymous said...

No I don't think that the "separate but equal" should be acceptable, even if they are equal because you shouldn't be separated because of your race. Also it is unnecessary to separate facilities if they are truly equal, then you have 2 of the same facilities. Besides it being expensive, its just wrong to segregate the African Americans from the whites.

Anonymous said...

I think that it still would not be okay because a country is supposed to be unified and to live as a whole. It is suppose to be, "One Nation Under God", not two separate but equal nations under god. And this would cause major issues and could start another civil war.

Idalis Figueroa said...

Since following the case of Plessy vs. Ferguson was such a dramatic point during history, i think that it caused many negative situations. Personally, I do not feel that the concept of "separate but equal" is fair at all, it doesn't even make sense. First of all these people shouldn't have been separated by the color of their skin, and what would make white skin superior to black skin? Second of all their facilities were not equal. Obviously during that time period the white's were better off since they received a better education, got to go to better restaurants, bathrooms, etc. but overall their life might have been viewed a lot easier than African Americans, so how is this "separate but equal"?

Natalie said...

I don't think that these laws would be acceptable even if the facilities were equal. The blacks would still be treated horribly by whites and all the facilities would still be separate.

Alana said...

I do not think that the idea of "separate but equal" is acceptable in any sense. The general idea of separating people based on race is wrong, and though one may try, no two things can ever be exactly alike. Facilities, hospitals,classrooms, and teachers are all bound to differ in some way, as would anything and everything else. No matter what, one of two things will always be considered better than the other in one way or another.

Jana O'Donnell said...

Even if the facilities were equal it still would have not been acceptable. the fact that the African Americans were segregated in the first place makes it unfair. To the African Americans, being separated from the white population would make them feel unwanted, wouldn't it? even with their freedom, they were still not welcome. Besides, what effect would this have on the economy? they would have to spend double the amount of money for basically everything. Segregation, even if it was actually equal, is still unjust.

Anonymous said...

Even if accommodations were "truly equal", I don't think that separate facilities are acceptable because it is still segregation. If it was, then there should have been separate, but equal, facilities for women and other minority groups in the US, as well. At some point, the segregation needs to end and everyone needs to be treated as "equal".

Anonymous said...

Even if both facilities were "truly equal", I would think "separate but equal" is still not right because you are separating two groups of people because of skin color. Also blacks would still be discriminated against even though they have equal facilities.

Anonymous said...

I think the idea of "separate but equal" is not okay because it isn't right to separate people just because of their skin color. I think people regardless of skin color can sit where they want on a bus, go to the same school, hospitals, restaurants, movie theaters and water fountains because we are all people and all deserve the same rights. I dont not believe laws like this are acceptable because there is no real reason that African Americans and whites should be separated.

Conrad Lindenberg said...

If facilities were truly equal, there would have been less disruption in the south. However, it is pointless to have two of everything and it would waste a lot of money. Some white people may have black friends and they would not be able to do many things together. Having "separate but equal" facilities does not make one race superior, but it does make them feel like they shouldn't be together.

Bella Sapio:] said...

I do not agree with "separate but equal" because I do not think it is fair to blacks and I still do not believe it was equal. Nobody should be separated from others because of their color. This quote is saying that whites and blacks are equal but they really aren't cause they are separate from the whites.

Charlie Wheeler said...

I think that if it was really equal then it would be okay. But even if it was equal there would still be discrimination against the blacks. Also it would be bad for the economy to have two of everything. Also separate but equal makes it seem like blacks and whites shouldn't ever be friends and they shouldn't be together.

Molly McQuilkin said...

I believe that the idea of "separate but equal" is not acceptable. I think this because people should not be segregated because of their skin color, something that they can't choose. The separation of whites and blacks also cost a lot more, because you need two of everything from schools to water fountains. I think that the people should have a choice in where they want to sit, go to school, take a drink of water, or even seek medical help. It just doesn't make sense economically or logically to sperate them, so I think "separate but equal" it not acceptable.

Molly McQuilkin said...
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Anonymous said...

"Seperate but equal" is not acceptable at all. It is not equal because the whites have much better facilities than the African Americans. It is also bad because they are still discriminating against the African Americans.

jbenanti said...

I believe that the "Separate but Equal" act was not fair and should not be a law back then, because the whites had much better accommodations compered to blacks, which were rundown and disgusting. Those are my thoughts on the "Separate but Equal" act.

mvalenti said...

Separate but equal is not okay because i think that everyone should have the opportunity to get to know each other. While we are living in the America why not get to know the people who are living in our community? Also, I think that this privilege is to broad because who is to say whats equal and what isn't? I think that our country should have never gave this law the right to enter our society and even if it's "equal" it is completely hypocritical. This is not what the founding fathers of our country would have wanted for our county to be.

Anonymous said...

I believe that separate but equal was a joke. All the white facilities were cleaner, nicer, and better. Also keeping whites and blacks apart and not letting them commingle with one another there will be major racial discrimination. Also the blacks, because they had just got out of slavery where they made no money, had just come into america as a citizen with no money. Now that the whites and blacks are separate and the blacks have little money the whites will try and become superior to the blacks

Liam G said...

I think that laws like this should not be valid because it is obvious that the "dominant" race at the time (being whites) would have the better facilities and that the "lesser" race (blacks) would get the crappy ones. The law was only acceptable at the time because the whites had the power and when they printed blacks from getting basic rights they took over. Only whites could vote in the south keeping the white dominance in tack. If that happened now the law would abolished almost immediately.

Anonymous said...

If the accommodations were "truly equal" then I don't think the laws you listed could be valid and or acceptable. I think people could say that it would be equal but it will never be because with segregation comes people thinking of everyone else as lower than themselves. So it may seem to be equal but then you have comments like "eww I would never go in the same disgusting place as those BLACKS". With segregation there there can not be equal anything. So no, I don't think that it could be "really" equal.