Homer Plessy arrested in New Orleans (1892)

Homer Plessy, a mixed-race man, was arrested in New Orleans on June 7, 1892, for deliberately boarding a whites-only train car. This act of civil disobedience, organized by the Comité des Citoyens, challenged Louisiana's Separate Car Act of 1890. The incident led to a legal battle that culminated in the landmark Supreme Court decision Plessy v. Ferguson, establishing the 'separate but equal' doctrine.

Episodes

Background and detail

Background. Louisiana's Separate Car Act of 1890 required 'equal, but separate' railroad accommodations for white and black passengers. In the 1880s, Homer Plessy became involved in political activism. In 1892, the civil rights group Comité des Citoyens recruited him for an act of civil disobedience to challenge this law, aiming to test its constitutionality under the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments.

Legal Context. The legal strategy relied on challenging the application of the Separate Car Act. Earlier, Daniel Desdunes purchased a ticket for an interstate trip, but the case was dropped after the Louisiana State Supreme Court ruled the Act did not apply to interstate travel. Plessy's case was structured as an intrastate violation to ensure the law's constitutionality could be tested.

Arrest and Legal Proceedings. Plessy was arrested by a private detective hired by the Comité des Citoyens. He was arraigned before Judge John Howard Ferguson in the Orleans Parish criminal district court on October 28, 1892. In December 1892, the Louisiana Supreme Court upheld Ferguson's ruling, denying Plessy's request for a rehearing, setting the stage for federal review.

People involved

Sources

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