Segregation
U.S. Naturalization Test (2025 Standard) glossary · Civics
Definition
Forced separation of races - Jim Crow's system.
Segregation in plain English
"Segregation" means forcing people of different races to stay separated — different schools, water fountains, seats on the bus, whole neighborhoods. In much of the U.S., especially the South, this was actual law for decades under a system nicknamed "Jim Crow," and "separate" almost always meant worse for Black Americans. Imagine a school where the rules physically kept some kids out of the good classrooms purely because of their skin color — that was real life until the civil rights movement fought to end it. It's important to know because a huge part of American history is the struggle to undo it.
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