Earl+Warren



Earl Warren 1891-1974

Earl Warren, one of possibly America's greatest Supreme Court Justices has had an amazing life as both a Justice and an American;and with that he has proven that upholding civil rights and justice is what the Supreme Court is all about, here is his story. Earl Warren was Supreme Court Justice during the case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. It was his first case as a Justice of the Supreme Court. In that case Warren after hearing the evidence of both sides asked of the unanimous decision of the court that the separation of children in schools was unconstitutional and denied the students of their rights to have an education.(In other words the court decided that "separate and equal" portion of the Jim Crow Laws did not apply to school systems.)

Earl Warren was born in Los Angeles in 1891, a son of Methias and Christine Warren. His father was a railroad worker and Earl worked during the summers being a “call boy” for the railroads. He graduated from Kern County High School and then went to University of California at Berkeley. He also got his law degree there. Earl Warren served as the Attorney General of California and then was the governor before being appointed to the Supreme Court. He became the Chief Justice during the active Civil Rights years. Besides being on the Supreme Court for Brown vs. the Board of Education (school segregation issue), he was also on the court for Mapp vs. Ohio (about evidence illegally seized without a warrant), Engel vs. Vitale (mandatory school prayer), Griswold vs. Connecticut (right of privacy) and many others. He also served as head of the Warren Report which investigated who killed JFK. He died in 1974 at the age of 83.

"It is the spirit and not the form of law that keeps justice alive."
 * Quotes By Earl Warren**

"I feel that the greatest reward for doing is the opportunity to do more."

"If it is a mistake of the head and not the heart don't worry about it, that's the way we learn."

"The censor's sword pierces deeply into the heart of free expression."

"We may not know the whole story in our lifetime."

"In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education."

"Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile, I caught hell for."

"Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal."

"We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of "separate but equal" has no place."