Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark Supreme Court case decided in 1954. It challenged the legality of racial segregation in public schools. The case was brought by Oliver Brown, who argued that segregated schools were inherently unequal and violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that racial segregation in public education was unconstitutional. This decision overturned the precedent set by Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, which upheld the "separate but equal" doctrine. Brown v. Board of Education played a crucial role in the American civil rights movement, leading to the desegregation of schools across the nation.