Bluford vs. Canada, Civil Action No. 42: Complaint for Deprivation of Plaintiff's Civil Rights under Color of State Laws

Complaint for deprivation of plaintiff's civil rights under color of state laws in Civil Action No. 42: Lucile Bluford v. S.W. Canada, claiming damages of $20,000 for Bluford's rejection from the University of Missouri graduate program in journalism based solely on her race. The complaint recounts the details of her case, including her qualifications for the program and her repeated applications to and denials of admission, as well as the absence of any comparable program open to black students in the state. Her attorneys argue that that denial violates Bluford's rights under the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and that "she suffered great humiliation, mental anguish, loss of earning power and efficiency in her newspaper work, and lost irreplaceable time out of her life." At the time, Bluford was the managing editor of the Kansas City Call and her effort to gain admittance to the masters degree program at MU's School of Journalism, and repeated denials due to her race, lead to a a series of lawsuits that eventually reached the Missouri Supreme Court.