Legacy of Brown v. Board in Columbus schools

Friday marks the 70th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education ruling, which outlawed racial segregation in public schools.

Why it matters: This was a major milestone in the Civil Rights Movement and paved the way for integration in Columbus schools, though systemic inequities in American education still persist, seven decades later .

Flashback: Columbus City Schools and other districts remained segregated for years after the ruling as integration efforts faced significant resistance.

• The turning point came in 1977 when trailblazing federal judge Robert Duncan ruled the local school board was illegally maintaining segregated schools.
• Columbus challenged the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld Duncan's ruling .
• A new school busing program launched in 1979 with mostly peaceful results.

Yes, but: Integration drove many white families to the suburbs over the following decades, furthering a racial and economic divide.

• Columbus ended the busing program in 1996 in favor of a neighborhood school model.

The big picture: Local officials are still reckoning with past discriminatory policies like redlining and community destruction to build highways.

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