Maryland's HBCU Segregation suit reaches hands of federal judge

Judge will decide whether Maryland's higher-education policies cause racial divisions to persist for historically black universities

BALTIMORE, Maryland  -- A lawsuit alleging that Maryland's historically black colleges and universities continue to suffer from policies that promote racial segregation is now in the hands of a federal judge, six years after it was first filed.

U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake interrupted attorneys for both sides during the four hours of closing arguments Friday with questions and comments that gave hints at the issues she will weigh as she sorts through the six weeks of testimony and hundreds of pages of documents. She did not give an indication Friday when she will issue her ruling, saying only that it would not be "immediate."

Michael C. Jones, the attorney for the colleges' alumni and students, argued that the state's four historically black colleges — Morgan State University, Coppin State University, Bowie State University and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore — have never been given the chance to throw off the legacy of segregation, held back by a lack of money and decisions by the state to favor traditionally white institutions.

Blake paid particular attention to the issue of whether disparities between the historically black institutions and other schools in the state system can be traced to segregation-era policies, and the problems caused by the similarities in the course offerings at state colleges.

"I'm troubled by what seems to be a duplication of programs at geographically proximate institutions," she told Craig Thompson, the attorney representing the state.  The judge noted that the issue seemed especially serious in Baltimore and suggested that it was fairly easy to trace the duplication back to segregation, which required two of each program, one for whites and one for blacks.


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