Conflicts on a massive scale have plagued the continent for the past three decades. The first Congo war started in 1997 that devastated the Congo's infrastructure and left millions of eastern Congolese tribes in the hands of warlords. The second Congo war started in 1998 which brought in nearly half the continent that destroyed infrastructure and businesses all the way from Angola to the republic of the Congo. When infrastructure is destroyed, when people are unable to be taxed, when all tax money goes to arm purchases, when governments have been weakened it is difficult for outside countries to invest capital into countries in Africa. However many nations today are starting to trade (specifically with China) and develop rapidly in Africa after many of these conflicts like the Ethiopian- Eritrean war and the Angolan civil war have ended.
In its decision, the Supreme Court overruled the Plessy v Ferguson by ruling that the separation of children in public schools on the basis of race was unconstitutional. This ended racial segregation in public schools