Brown v. Board of Education overruled the previous court case known as Plessy v. Ferguson. Plessy v. Ferguson ruled that racial segregation was legal and appropriate, as long as the educational opportunities remained "separate but equal" for all races. Later however, it was acknowledged that African American students were not, in fact, receiving equal education. This later lead to Brown v. Board of Education, which ruled that segregation in places of education was unconstitutional.