Brown v. Board of Education

How important is education in American society?
"Today education is perhaps the most important function of state and local governments. Compulsory school attendance laws and the great expenditures for education both demonstrate our recognition of the importance of education to our democratic society. It is required in the performance of our most basic public resposibilties, even service in the armed forces. It is the very foundation of good citizenship. Today it is a principle instrument in awakening the child to cultual values, in preparing his for later professional training, and in helping him to adjust normally to his environment. In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an education. Such an opportunity, where the state has undertaken to provide it, is a right which must be made available to all on equal terms." (Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U. S. 483, 495, 1954).