What was the ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson?

The ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson established that state-sanctioned segregation was permissible under the doctrine of "separate but equal." The case arose from a legal challenge to Louisiana's segregation laws when Homer Plessy, who was of mixed race, was arrested for sitting in a whites-only train car. The Supreme Court's decision confirmed that as long as the separate facilities for different races were deemed equal in quality, segregation did not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This ruling effectively legitimized the segregationist framework that would persist for decades until it was eventually challenged and overturned by later civil rights cases. Understanding this ruling clarifies the historical context of racial segregation in the United States and its implications for subsequent legal battles and civil rights movements.