The Supreme Court
For most of the twentieth century the Supreme Court exercised a profound beneficial effect on the progress of blacks. In case after case, the Court invalidated legal and regulatory barriers which had legitimized the withholding of first-class citizenship from minorities. Decisions favorable to minorities occurred most frequently during the 16-year tenure of Chief Justice Earl Warren, form 1953 to 1969. During that period, the Court declared separate school facilities unconstitutional, sought to guarantee the rights of people under arrest and in scores of other decisions to erase discrimination in education, due process, housing, employment, recreation, jury service, transportation, and other areas.

Starting in 1969, however, the Court’s decisions reflected a more conservative view. Under Warren Burger, who replaced Chief Justice Warren, and with three new justices appointed by President Nixon, decisions tended to allow stated and local governments more discretion in law enforcement and integration procedures, with a resultant relaxation of efforts to end discriminatory practices. A factor in the change was the reduction of government representations to the Court on behalf of minorities and liberal views of due process. During the Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson administrations, the Solicitor General and federal agencies frequently urged the Court to reach “liberal” decisions. But after 1969, the government frequently delayed or reversed earlier verdicts.

By early 1975 “court-watchers” differed in their forecasts of the Court’s path. Some feared the Court might retreat to a course of decisions that would again make discrimination respectable. Most observers, however, felt that progress was still possible and that despite its retreats, the Court had no wish to return to the era of “legal racism”.