In 1896 the U.S. Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson upheld `equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races' on all passenger railways within the state of Louisiana. In this account, which has implications for present-day America, Lofgren traces the roots of this landmark case in the post-Civil War South, stressing the constitutional, legal, and intellectual premises that shaped this episode.

In 1896 the U.S. Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson upheld `equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races' on all passenger railways within the state of Louisiana. In this account, which has implications for present-day America, Lofgren traces the roots of this landmark case in the post-Civil War South, stressing the constitutional, legal, and intellectual premises that shaped this episode.