Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education was a landmark case decided by the United States Supreme Court in 1971. The case involved a challenge to the use of busing to desegregate public schools in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Court held that school districts had a duty to take affirmative steps to eliminate the effects of segregation and that busing was an appropriate means of achieving this goal. The Court also held that school districts had a responsibility to implement desegregation plans that were effective in eliminating the vestiges of past discrimination and that courts had a role in overseeing such plans. The decision was significant in establishing the legal precedent that busing could be used to achieve desegregation, and it has continued to shape discussions of school integration and affirmative action in the United States.