The United Sates Supreme Court plays a major role in expanding and limiting constitutional civil liberties in the United States. In the Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) case it limited civil rights of African Americans. In Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) case it expanded civil rights.
In 1896 a case that the Supreme Court handled was, Plessy v. Ferguson Homer Plessy, a 30-year old shoemaker, was jailed for sitting in the "White's" car of a train in Louisiana. Plessy went to court and argued that the Separate Car Act violated the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution John Howard Ferguson the judge of this case had previously declared the Separate Car Act unconstitutional. However; in regards to the Plessy trial, he stated that Louisiana could regulate railroad companies that only operated within its state. Therefore, Ferguson found Plessy guilty of refusing to leave the white car. Thus his decision lead to the limitation of civil rights to different raced people. .
In 1954 the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case challenged the previous ruling of the "separate but equal" doctrine. Oliver Brown took a Topeka school to the Supreme Court for denying his daughter (Linda Brown) admission to the elementary school. This showed segregation by not letting her into the elementary school, by not letting her in it showed to violate the 14th amendment. The court decided after a long time of auguring the case, that indeed it was in violation of the 14th amendment. The court then allowed Linda Brown to attend the Topeka school. This event was the turning point in the desegregation of public schools, and the beginning to equality among all races.
As seen the US Supreme Court had a major role of expanding and limiting civil liberties. The Plessy v. Ferguson limited the civil rights of different races other than white. The Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka case expanded the civil rights of all people.