The New Jersey Supreme Court case that transformed Trenton and the United States
The Hedgepeth and Williams v. Board of Education case was a landmark New Jersey Supreme Court decision decided on January 31, 1944.
It was ruled that since racial segregation was determined unconstitutional by the New Jersey State Constitution, segregating schools, and refusing to admit students on the basis of race was considered unlawful. Prior to the case, the Supreme Court had agreed segregated schools had been “separate but equal”. The case concluded with the formal desegregation of public schools in the state of New Jersey. It also acted as a precursor to the famous Brown v. Board of Education case, another landmark case that ruled the racial segregation of children in public schools across the United States as unconstitutional.
The story begins in Trenton, New Jersey’s Wilbur district where Gladys Hedgepeth and Berline Williams resided as they represented their 12-year-old children, Janet Hedgepeth and Leon Williams. While both children attended different schools, both reported being the only African-American students in their class, regardless of the integration laws of the state. Shortly after completing the sixth grade, the two were assigned attendance to the New Lincoln School, an African-American school located more than two miles from their neighborhood. Junior High No. 2, a junior high school with a mostly white student body was substantially closer. Disappointed in the location of the school, Berline Williams requested to transfer her son to Junior High No. 2, but was denied by the principal who claimed the school was not built for African Americans. The mothers took their concern to the Trenton Board of Education where no further action was taken. By the time the school year began in September, Williams and Hedgepeth had independent lawsuits against the Trenton Board of Education, claiming discrimination on the basis of race.
On January 31, 1944, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Hedgepeth and Williams, as the school district could not present cause for denying Hedgepath’s transfer request, resulting in the unconstitutional ruling of segregation in public schools. In honor of the families’ success, Junior High No. 2 was renamed Hedgepeth-Williams Middle School in 1993.
The Hedgepeth and Williams v. Trenton Board of Education case paved the way for not only the people of New Jersey, but African Americans across the United States with the integration of all public schools due to Brown v. Board of Education. It is truly a story of triumph and change, starting with just the city of Trenton and ending with the development of an entire nation that seemed so adverse toward change. With the bravery of two women from Trenton, an entire nation was transformed. As they fought for the future of their children, they changed the futures of generations to come. The legacy of Hedgepeth and Williams will act as a reminder that small battles can lead to big changes.
This article originally appeared in Trenton Journal’s “Social Justice” print magazine.
