80 years later, Trenton community commemorates historic Hedgepeth-Williams decision

TRENTON, New Jersey (WPVI) -- A decade before Brown v. Board of Education, there was a case that set the stage for change.

On Wednesday, a Trenton community commemorated the landmark Hedgepeth and Williams v. Board of Education decision.

It paved the way to integrate education, proving that progress begins with precedent.

Eight decades ago, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that it was unlawful for schools to segregate or refuse entry to a student based on race.

Rising seventh-graders Janey Hedgepeth and Leon Williams, along with their mothers, went to court after they were to be bused over two miles from home rather than be allowed to attend an all-white school three blocks away.

In 1993, the junior high was renamed Hedgepeth-Williams School.

Last year, Kelly Tianga petitioned for a placard to be installed outside the school.

Tianga's great-grandfather trialed the case for the NAACP.

The Hedgepeth-Williams decision was later cited as a critical precedent for the Brown v. Board of Education ruling in 1954.