Which landmark legislation ended segregation in public schools?

The landmark ruling that ended segregation in public schools is the decision in Brown v. Board of Education. This pivotal case, decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1954, declared that state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students were unconstitutional. The Court determined that "separate but equal" educational facilities were inherently unequal, violating the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This ruling was monumental in dismantling the legal framework supporting segregation in education and set a precedent for the civil rights movement, leading to further legislative and social changes aimed at achieving racial equality.

The other choices, while significant in the broader context of civil rights and social justice, do not directly address the issue of public school segregation. For instance, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 aimed to eliminate discrimination in various areas, including employment and public accommodations, but it came after Brown and served as a broader legislative response to civil rights issues. The Sherman Antitrust Act primarily dealt with economic regulation and competition, and the Education Amendments of 1972 were focused on educational equity, particularly for women, rather than the specific matter of desegregation in schools. Thus, the Brown v. Board of Education ruling is specifically credited with bringing an end to