Laying the Groundwork for Desegregation
To combat the issue of underfunded, underprivileged and therefore underachieving African-American schools, parents, teachers and leaders within the Summerton community banded together. Due to their efforts, in 1951 South Carolina passed its first statewide sales tax and dedicated the revenue to building and improving African-American schools. In 1952, Briggs v. Elliott was filed and was one of the five lawsuits combined in the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case, which declared racial segregation in public schools to be unconstitutional.
Historic churches, family homes and schools are still standing in this rural community just off I-95, as reminders that separate is not equal.
