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In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled that state laws establishing separate public schools for White and Black students were unconstitutional, leading to the integration of classrooms, sports teams, school clubs, and even after-school dances. Sadly, more than 50 years later, some communities continue to hold segregated proms for White and minority public school students. 

In the documentary "Prom Night in Mississippi", director Paul Saltzman uses interviews and video diaries to show Charleston High School students' experiences with race, and their excitement about attending their first integrated prom – in 2008.

"Prom Night in Mississippi" first aired on July 20 on HBO, and will continue to be featured during HBO's Documentary Film Series this summer.

On August 2, 1790, U.S. judicial marshals and their assistants began the first United States census, eventually tallying the entire population of the United States at 3.9 million, less than 13 percent of the current U.S. population. 

The first census was scheduled to take only nine months and was executed by 17 judicial marshals assisted by only 650 field workers.  The entire survey cost only $44,377 (more than $3.4 billion in today's dollars) and results were submitted directly to President George Washington for immediate publication. 

While the only information required by the Constitution was the overall number of persons, the first census asked for the name of the head of the household and the number of people in the household.  People were placed in one of five categories:

• free White males age 16 and over;
• free White males under age 16;
• free White females;
• other free persons; and
• slaves.

This Saturday marks the 91st birthday of Nelson Mandela, civil rights activist, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former president of South Africa. 

Considered the most influential Black leader in South African history, Nelson Mandela was instrumental in ending apartheid, a stringent system of legalized racial segregation.  He began his activism in the 1940s as a member of the pro-Black political party, African National Congress (ANC), which led anti-apartheid campaigns for decades. 

In 1964, after two decades of civil rights protests, Mandela was arrested for his involvement in the ANC eventually spending 27 years in prison as a political prisoner.  While incarcerated, Mandela maintained a strong moral commitment to racial equality, refusing to compromise his ideals in exchange for his freedom.

By 1990, anti-apartheid groups had gained significant domestic and international support, leading President F.W. de Klerk to reverse a national ban on anti-apartheid organizations and release Mandela from prison.  Upon his release, Mandela resumed leadership of ANC, which began negotiations with the ruling National Party under President de Klerk and other groups to end apartheid.  He was awarded the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize for his leadership. 

Today marks the 38th anniversary of the ratification of the 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The amendment lowered the voting age to 18 in federal, state, and local elections.

Congress introduced the amendment in response to a 1970 Supreme Court decision, Oregon v. Mitchell, which held that Congress could not alter state or local voting arrangements through legislation. Congress had passed a law lowering the voting age earlier that year, in response to growing support for lowering the voting age among student and youth activists who opposed U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Many American soldiers drafted to serve in Vietnam were between the ages of 18 and 21, a fact that helped to popularize the slogan, "old enough to fight, old enough to vote."

More than 50 percent of 18-24 year olds voted in the 1972 election, the first election after the amendment's ratification, according to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. The turnout for this demographic has been steadily increasing since the 1996 election, with turnout in 2008 – 48.5 percent – nearly reaching 1972 levels.

Amendments to the Constitution are passed in both houses of Congress by a two-thirds majority vote and approved by at least three-quarters of the states.

Today, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed a resolution apologizing to African Americans for slavery and segregation.  The resolution was introduced by Senator Tom Harkin, D. Iowa, and Senator Sam Brownback. R. Kan. 

In the resolution, the Senate "expresses its recommitment to the principle that all people are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and calls on all people of the United States to work toward eliminating racial prejudices, injustices and discrimination from our society."

Wade Henderson, president and CEO of LCCR, said:

"Slavery and the western slave trade are crimes against humanity and will forever be known as our republic's original sin. A formal apology by the U.S. Congress for the dehumanization and racism wrought by both the enslavement of African Americans and for Jim Crow segregation will admittedly never right such a grave wrong, but it is an important first step in acknowledging its tortured legacy.

For almost a century after our civil war, African Americans endured numerous civil and human rights violations including lynchings, deprivation of the right to vote, and other forms disenfranchisement borne out of virulent racism.

The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights commends Senators Harkin and Brownback for introducing a resolution that appropriately speaks to this past collective injustice. It represents an important advancement for civil and human rights, as well as for racial healing and reconciliation.

This Senate resolution – similar to one passed by the House last year – acknowledges the loss of human dignity and opportunity that continues to this day, and serves as a reminder for future generations that the evils of slavery and racial segregation can never be accepted again."