In the two decades following the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision, tens of thousands of Black educators in the South and border states lost their jobs. Few scholars have studied how Brown impacted Black teachers in the North. Did they have the same experience?
NCSD’s new report begins to answer this question: “The Impact of Brown v. Board of Education on Black Teachers Outside of the South, 1934-1974,” by Zoë Burkholder, a professor of educational foundations at Montclair State University.
In tracing the complex history of Black teachers outside the South before and after 1954, Burkholder finds that, unlike those in the South, Black teachers in the North generally did not lose their jobs directly or indirectly due to Brown. The story is much more complicated.
As we continue to reflect on what is required to truly fulfill the promise of Brown, we invite you to read this timely and insightful report that offers important nuance to the conversation on the impact of the Court’s decision on Black educators.