The document discusses the history of education for African American children from slavery through the civil rights era. It notes that during slavery, it was illegal to teach enslaved people to read or write. It then discusses key court cases like Plessy v. Ferguson that upheld "separate but equal" and Brown v. Board of Education, which ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. The document examines debates around the purpose of educating African Americans and protests that helped advance desegregation, like those led by Barbara Johns.