.
. WELCOME
. WELCOME BACK TO SHOW ME ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI IS HOME TO FOUR
LAW SCHOOLS.
BUT DID YOU KNOW AT ONE TIME
HOW TO FIT YET THAT SCHOOL WAS
A HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE, A
SCHOOL OF LAW FOR LINCOLN
UNIVERSITY.
IT ONLY EXISTED FROM NINETEEN
THIRTY NINE TO NINETEEN FIFTY
FIVE AND ANDY KREWSON FROM
BROWN AND GROUPON IS SHARING A
SCHOOL STORY IN HONOR OF BLACK
HISTORY MONTH.
ANDY ST. LOUIS HAS SO MUCH TO
CELEBRATE DURING BLAGS AND
YOU'RE GOING TO TELL US ABOUT
ONE OF MAYBE THE LESSER KNOWN
PIECES OF THAT STORY TODAY
OF LINCOLN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL
OF LAW DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE
BUT THE SCHOOL'S HISTORY REALLY
PARALLELS OUR COUNTRY'S NEEDED
AND OUTRIGHT UGLY RELATIONSHIP
.
YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT.
I THINK IF YOU ASK MOST PEOPLE
THEY'RE AWARE BEFORE CURRENT
LAW SCHOOLS IN MISSOURI USLU
THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI
COLUMBIA AND UNIVERSITY
OF MISSOURI, KANSAS CITY
HOWEVER FROM NINETEEN THIRTY
NINE TO NINETEEN FIFTY FIVE ST.
LOUIS HAD A FIFTH LAW SCHOOL
LINCOLN UNIVERSITY WHICH WAS
AN BCU.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT IS,
THAT'S A HISTORICALLY BLACK
COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY.
WHAT HAPPENED WAS IN PLESSY VS.
FERGUSON IN 1896.
THAT'S THE SEPARATE BUT EQUAL
DOCTRINE AND IT WAS DETERMINED
THAT SEPARATE BUT EQUAL WAS
CONSTITUTIONAL.
THIS MEANT THAT INSTEAD
OF ADMITTING BLACK STUDENTS TO
THE MISSOURI UNIVERSITIES THEY
DECIDED THAT THEY COULD KEEP
THEM OUT OF THAT SYSTEM AND
JUST PAY FOR BLACK LAW STUDENTS
TO ATTEND LAW SCHOOL AT OTHER
LOCATIONS SEPARATE BUT
SUPPOSEDLY EQUAL.
WHAT IT MEANT WAS PEOPLE HAD TO
LEAVE BEHIND THEIR FAMILY,
THEIR JOBS, THEIR COMMUNITIES
FOR SEVERAL YEARS IN ORDER TO
BECOME LAWYERS WHEN THEIR WHITE
COLLEAGUES WOULD JUST GO TO THE
SCHOOL SOMETIMES DOWN THE
STREET AND GET THE SAME
EDUCATION AND WOULDN'T HAVE TO
LEAVE THEIR FAMILY.
MORE IMPORTANTLY, THEY HAD
ACCESS AFTER LAW SCHOOL BECAUSE
THEY WENT TO LAW SCHOOL IN
THEIR OWN COMMUNITY AS OPPOSED
TO BEING SENT TO OTHER STATES.
OFTEN THEY DIDN'T HAVE ACCESS
TO THE SAME JOBS OR CONNECTIONS
WITHIN THE COMMUNITY WHICH IS
SORT OF BETRAYED THIS THIS
DISHONESTY OF SEPARATE BEING
EQUAL IN NINETEEN THIRTY FIVE
LLOYD GAINES APPLIED FOR
ADMISSION TO THE UNIVERSITY
OF MISSOURI SCHOOL OF LAW AND
HE WAS VERY QUALIFIED BUT HE
WAS DENIED BECAUSE HE WAS BLACK
.
SO HE SUED IN MISSOURI EXARO
GAMES V. CANADA WOODS IN CANADA
WAS THE NAME OF MISSOURI'S
REGISTRAR NOT THE COUNTRY
OF CANADA ANYWAY THE SUPREME
COURT DETERMINED THAT WHITE
MISSOURIANS ATTENDING LAW
SCHOOL IN STATES WHILE
REQUIRING BLACK STUDENTS TO
LEAVE THE STATE WAS AN EQUAL
PROTECTION VIOLATION.
SO WHAT HAPPENED WAS THEY SAID
MISSOURI YOU CAN EITHER ADMIT
LAW BLACK LAW STUDENTS TO YOUR
SCHOOLS OR OPEN A SEPARATE LAW
SCHOOL FOR BLACK STUDENTS.
NO SURPRISE THEY CHOSE THE
LATTER AND THAT WAS A CREATION
OF LINCOLN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL
OF LAW.
THE MAIN CAMPUS BEING A
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL
OF LAW WAS ACTUALLY IN DOWNTOWN
ST. LOUIS.
FAST FORWARD TO NINETEEN FIFTY
FOR THE US SUPREME COURT RULED
IN BROWN VS. BOARD OF EDUCATION
THAT THE SEPARATE BUT EQUAL
DOCTRINE WAS INDEED
UNCONSTITUTIONAL.
FINALLY AND THE LINCOLN
UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW WAS
ABSORBED INTO MAZOUZ SCHOOL
OF LAW IN NINETEEN FIFTY FIVE
SO IT WAS A SHORT LIVED BUT
VITAL INSTITUTION IN THE STATE.
ANDY, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
THANKS FOR HAVING ME.
IF YOU NEED LEGAL ADVICE GIVE
THE EXPERTS ABOUT INCUE GOING
TO