The first step: how one girl put segregation on trial

In 1847, a young African American girl named Sarah Roberts was attending a school in Boston.

Then one day she was told she could never come back.

She didn't belong. The Otis School was for white children only. Sarah deserved an equal education, and the Roberts family fought for change.

They made history. Roberts v. City of Boston was the first case challenging our legal system to outlaw segregated schools.

It was the first time an African American lawyer argued in a supreme court.

These first steps set in motion changes that ultimately led to equality under the law in the United States.