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oSegregation by definition is the social or legal practice of separating a group or person(s) simply because or their race. There are two main types of segregation: de jure segregation and de facto segregation. De jure segregation or segregation by law occurred when laws required racial separation or where the laws allowed segregation. This form of segregation has been banned in the U.S. since the mid-1960s. De facto segregation or segregation in fact occurs when other circumstances such as economic and political cause separation even though no laws require this separation.

eeeThe first legal challenged instance of segregation took place in Boston, Massachusetts when a man named Benjamin Roberts sued the city of Boston to allow his daughter to attend a nearby school rather than travel across the city to a segregated school. Robert Morris and Charles Sumner (the future writer of the Civil Rights Act of 1875) represented him. Although this case was lost, Boston in 1855 banned segregation in its public schools.

uuuAfter the Civil War, de jure segregation became the law of the land in the South. It had not been need before the war since 95% of blacks were slaves at that point. Black codes were passed which severely limited the rights of blacks. These codes forced blacks to work for whites if they were considered unemployed and put limits on property (generally-none). The codes succeeded in preventing blacks from improving their social status.

ttttDuring Reconstruction, when Republicans had control of most governments in the South. This was the highpoint for blacks after the civil war were they got the rights that were already given to them by the Constitution. In 1877, Democrats took conrol of the Southern government once again. With this , Reconstructiion ended. Soon the Democratic Party in the South began to prevent blacks from voting to strip away the political power blacks had gained during Reconstruction.

uuuThe methods used to prevent balcks from voting included pool taxes which was too expensive for most blacks and literacy tests, which most former slaves could not pass because they could not read.This severely reduced the amount of black men who voted.

ppppppLearn more about how segregation affected Ida B. Well's Life