Harry Briggs and other parents sued the Summerton School District in Briggs v. Elliott in 1949 because they believed that the segregation of Black and White students in public schools was unconstitutional and unjust. They argued that separate facilities for Black and White students were inherently unequal and deprived Black students of equal educational opportunities. The lawsuit was a primary legal challenge to racial segregation in public schools and was a precursor to the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.
