Plessy vs Ferguson and Judge Harlan's Dissent

In the Plessy vs Ferguson case of 1896 the large majority of Justices voted in favor of "separate but equal". In fact only one Justice, Harlan, voted against it. So why did he still vote against it when he knew he would for sure lose, because Harlan made a valid, strong argument to push for equality. For those willing to listen he provided a substantial argument in an attempt to protect the freedoms of african-americans. His argument had some really strong points as he cited and gave his own interpretation of the 14th amendment. He also discussed how our judicial system did not need to fail the african-american people again after it already had with the Dred Scott Decision.

At the time I'm sure more white people probably trusted the system than african-americans, so there was not likely to be a large objection from the general population. This is especially the case because of how over whelming the votes from the Justices was. Today, it seems people are much more worldly and cultured than they were at the time. Even though it was a large majority decision, I don't believe the majority of America would have stood for it.

I'm sure at the time this would have been hard to see, but I believe this slimmer of hope for equality from Justice Harlan is spark for our judicial system to head in the right direction. Our system definitely still had a long way to go but it is the opinions of people with a voice like Justice Harlan that can make a change.