The First Step: How One Girl Put Segregation on Trial

In 1847 Boston, Sarah Roberts, a young African American child, was barred from returning to the school she attended because it was reserved for white children. Her family challenged the law in pursuit of equal education. Their case, City of Boston, became an early legal challenge to segregated schools and included the first appearance of an African American lawyer before a supreme court. Watercolor and gouache illustrations and extensive back matter accompany the history.