What did the plessy v. Ferguson case decide?

The Plessy v. Ferguson case, decided in 1896, upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the "separate but equal" doctrine. The Supreme Court ruled that state laws requiring racial segregation in public facilities did not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, effectively legitimizing discriminatory practices. This decision reinforced systemic racism and segregation in the United States for decades until it was overturned by Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.