The Supreme Court’s ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson was problematic because the court was not able to overturn the Louisiana state law that required passengers be separated by race. the court did not have any African American justices among its members. it was unclear if Plessy (who was of mixed race) broke the law by sitting in the whites-only coach. it was based on the belief that segregation was permissible as long as the facilities were equal.