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Constitutional Law Keyed to Farber
Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education
Citation:
402 U.S. 1, 91 S. Ct. 1267, 28 L. Ed. 2d 554 (1971)Facts
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system encompassed 550 square miles and served more than 84,000 pupils in 107 schools during the 1968-1969 school year, with approximately 71% white and 29% Negro students. Of the approximately 24,000 Negro students in the system, about 21,000 attended schools within the city of Charlotte, and approximately 14,000 of those students attended 21 schools which were either totally Negro or more than 99% Negro. This situation existed under a 1965 desegregation plan based on geographic zoning with free transfers. In September 1968, petitioner Swann moved for further relief. The District Court found that the school board had maintained a dual system and that residential patterns resulted partly from government action. When the board repeatedly failed to submit acceptable desegregation plans despite multiple opportunities, the District Court appointed Dr. John Finger to prepare a plan. The court ultimately adopted a comprehensive remedy including busing, pairing of schools, and gerrymandered attendance zones.
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