Which desegregation strategy did Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education authorize?

• A. Busing to desegregate schools
• B. Redlining
• C. School vouchers
• D. Local control of schools

Answer: (A)

The main concept is that Swann authorized busing as a desegregation remedy. In Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg, the Supreme Court upheld the use of transporting students to different schools as a legitimate tool to achieve racial integration when district lines and attendance zones had produced or maintained segregation. The ruling made clear that federal courts could order busing, within and between districts, along with other remedial steps, to create a unitary, nonracially segregated school system.

This stands in contrast to other options: redlining refers to housing discrimination and isn’t a school-desegregation remedy; school vouchers involve funding for private schooling and were not the remedy Swann endorsed; and local control of schools is about governance rather than a federally approved integration strategy. Swann’s focus was on transportation and related remedial measures as a means to achieve integration.