100 Americans Making Constitutional History: A Biographical History presents 100 profiles of the key people behind some of the most important U.S. Supreme Court cases. Edited by Melvin I. Urofsky, a respected constitutional historian, each 2,000-word profile delves into the social and political context behind landmark Court decisions. For example, while a case like Brown v. Board of Education is about an important idea—the equal protection of the law—at its heart it is the story of a little girl, Linda Brown, who wanted to go to a decent school near her home. The outcome is accessible and objective “stories” about the individuals—heroes and scoundrels—who fought their way to constitutional history.

Berea College

Berea College

The Education of African Americans

“They must not Remain a Nation of Bootblacks and Stevedores”

Berea College v. Kentucky 211 U.S. 45 (1908)

The bitter fight between Berea College and the state of Kentucky began long before the lawsuit that bears their names. For decades, the town of Berea and its college, both dedicated to interracial harmony and equality, had outraged white Kentuckians. But Berea's founder was well prepared for opposition.

John Gregg Fee, born in Kentucky in 1816, studied at Lane Theological Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the 1840s. The seminary was at the forefront of abolitionism, and while there Fee came to believe that slavery was a sin against man and God. After ordination, he gave up his plans to do foreign missionary work in ...

  • Loading...
locked icon

Sign in to access this content

Get a 30 day FREE TRIAL

  • Watch videos from a variety of sources bringing classroom topics to life
  • Read modern, diverse business cases
  • Explore hundreds of books and reference titles