Who was Plessy?
Homer Adolph Plessy was born free in New Orleans on March 17, 1862. He was considered an eight black because one of his great grandparents were black. Plessy's father passed away when you was around the age of five. He began to work as a shoemaker in 1879, but some list him as a carpenter. 1888 was the year he married Louise Bordenave. They lived on North Claiborne Avenue in the Treme section of New Orleans. This neighborhood was a mix of black and white residents that got along well without complications. Plessy was a vice president of a local organization, the Societe des Francs Amis, which supplied medical and funeral coverage for paying members. Between the years of 1892-1896 he was a civil rights activist and was part of the Citizens Committee. After that he worked as a collector for the People’s Life Insurance Company.
What Actually Happened ?
The Citizens Committee wanted to challenge the Louisiana Separate Car Law, they were going to do this by having a black man intentionally brake the Louisiana law by sitting in the white car. They did this in hope that the man would get arrested and then be tried in federal court. This would give the court a chance to see that the law does not correspond with the thirteenth and fourteenth amendments of the Constitution which had stopped slavery and guaranteed the rights of citizenship and equal protection under the law for Blacks. One of the committee's leaders suggested the man who did this was not easily categorized to either race. Plessy volunteered himself for the job.
On June 7,1892, Plessy arrived at the Press Street Station in New Orleans and purchased a ticket on the East Louisiana Railroad to Covington. Soon after the train had left , one of the conductors told Plessy that he had to move to the “colored car.” Plessy refused and the train was then stopped. Next a private detective hired by the Committee boarded the bus and told Plessy he was breaking a law by sitting in the "Whites Only" car and refusing to move. Plessy nodded his head in approval and was then arrested by the detective and taken to a local police station. Committee members paid a $500 bond to get Plessy release from jail. He was free until his trail.
On June 7,1892, Plessy arrived at the Press Street Station in New Orleans and purchased a ticket on the East Louisiana Railroad to Covington. Soon after the train had left , one of the conductors told Plessy that he had to move to the “colored car.” Plessy refused and the train was then stopped. Next a private detective hired by the Committee boarded the bus and told Plessy he was breaking a law by sitting in the "Whites Only" car and refusing to move. Plessy nodded his head in approval and was then arrested by the detective and taken to a local police station. Committee members paid a $500 bond to get Plessy release from jail. He was free until his trail.