Belton v Gebhart
By
John C Abercrombie
The 3rd case combined in the landmark Brown v Board of Education case is interesting in many respects. Even the state represents an interesting fact. Delaware as a slave state that did not leave the Union during the Civil War. Thus, when the Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in the Confederate States of America, it did not do so in those states that remained in the United States of America.
The Belton v Gebhart case is also memorable as a case in which the lower court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs. In the other cases, the lower courts had ruled against the plaintiffs. In Belton v Gebhart, the Board of Education had appealed the decision to integrate the schools.
Although, Delaware was aligned with the Union during the Civil War, it was a state that had a segregated school system. There was de facto and de jure segregation practiced in the state.
De facto segregation is that not defined by law, but in practice. De jure segregation is defined by laws and other regulations. Jim Crow laws, which mandated racial segregation in all public facilities were prevalent well into the 1940’s in Delaware. The use of Jim Crow laws had been upheld by the courts in the 1896 Plessy v Ferguson case.
The laws of Delaware seemed to be in conflict with each other since the state constitution provided “no distinction shall be made on amount of race or color”, the law required “separate schools for White and Colored children shall be maintained.
The concept of “separate but equal” has never been equitable. It has stood as separate, but never equal. Delaware was no exception to this practice. Schools for Blacks were generally in poor shape with respect to facilities, curriculum and poorly financed. They were in all aspects second rate at best.
As we consider Delaware, there are actually 2 similar cases involved. The first is Belton v Gebhart, brought by Ethel Belton and 6 other Black parents. They lived in Claymont, Delaware where there was a well maintained High School. Despite the White High School, Black parents had to send their children on a public bus to a dilapidated school in downtown Wilmington, Delaware. Over 35 miles away. In fact, there was only 1 high school for the entire state. Howard High School raised concern about class size, teacher qualifications and the curriculum itself. Those students interested in vocational training were required to walk several blocks to a nearby annex to attend class that were only offered after the end of the normal school day.
The 2nd Delaware case is known as Bulah v Gebhart, brought by Sarah Bulah. Her daughter was denied admission to a White only Hockessin School and was compelled to attend the one-room Colored school. This school was very much inferior to the White school. The young student had to walk to school although there was a bus serving the nearby White only school. As we see in so many cases, attending school in addition to having inferior facilities and funding was often greatly inconvenienced by the lack of buses and other resources.
A leading player in the fight for Civil Rights was Louis L Redding the first Black attorney in the history of Delaware. His reputation was outstanding as he had previously brought suit in the Parker v University of Delaware, which resulted in a ruling that segregation at the University of Delaware was unconstitutional.
During the trial, evidence was presented showing the patently substandard conditions of the Black schools in Wilmington and Hockessin in infrastructure and inner workings. The facts were not rebutted by the defense.
The case then went to the State Supreme Court. They ruled that segregation was legal and affirmed by the Plessy decision but ordered integration. This caused the school district to appeal to the United States Supreme Court where the case was consolidated with Brown.
A separate post will look at the life and work of Louis Redding, a most amazing man and a giant in the world of Civil Rights. His brother J. Sanders Redding became an author and college professor. His daughter a minister.
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J B Redding, daughter of Louis L Redding, speaks at Redding School historic marker ceremony
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U.S. Supreme Court Transcript of Record Brown v. Board of Ed. of Topeka, Shawnee County, Kan.; Briggs v. Elliott; Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, Va.;
Gebhart v. Belton et al. The Making of Modern Law: U.S. Supreme Court Records and Briefs, 1832-1978 contains the world’s most comprehensive collection of records and briefs brought before the nation’s highest court by leading legal practitioners – many who later became judges and associates of the court. It includes transcripts, applications for review, motions, petitions, supplements and other official papers of the most-studied and talked-about cases, including many that resulted in landmark decisions
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Dr. Tony Allen – 2019 Louis L. Redding L. Redding Excellence in Education Honoree
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Delaware (Black America)
African-American life in Delaware from the late 1800s to the 1960s was characterized by a struggle for equity in a time when there was none. This vigorous community set about developing its own institutions and activities, and what emerged was a rich cultural life that produced or attracted some of the best and brightest of African-American minds.
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Black History Month featuring Louis L Redding Black History Month featuring Louis L. Redding with reporter Yesenia Taveras. 02.15.2017
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Eyes on the Prize:
America’s Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965 From the Montgomery bus boycott to the Little Rock Nine to the Selma–Montgomery march, thousands of ordinary people who participated in the American civil rights movement; their stories are told in Eyes on the Prize. From leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr., to lesser-known figures such as Barbara Rose John and Jim Zwerg, each man and woman made the decision that something had to be done to stop discrimination. These moving accounts and pictures of the first decade of the civil rights movement are a tribute to the people, black and white, who took part in the fight for justice and the struggle they endured.
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Marker recognizes Wilmington civil rights icon Louis Redding
A historical marker now stands outside Louis Redding’s Wilmington home, helping to tell the story of Delaware’s first African American attorney.
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The Lonesome Road: The Story of the Negro’s Part in America
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Biography – Redding, (Jay) Saunders (1906-1988): An article from: Contemporary Authors
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