"Brown v. Board of Education" reminds this author, a linguist, of the linguistic diversity among black Americans, be they descendants of enslaved Africans--as he is proud to be--or Africans who escaped slavery. There is as much linguistic diversity among their race as among any other racial or ethnic group in the United States. When the Supreme Court handed down its landmark decision, "Brown" was hailed as the case that would lead to educational equality for all African Americans. That vision, however, has yet to be realized. In part, that is because, since "Brown," they have come to understand that racial segregation was only one obstacle standing in their way. This paper seeks to introduce some neglected linguistic dimensions into this realm, with particular attention to the "Brown" ruling and the growing linguistic diversity of black America. (Contains 1 figure.)