Shelley v. Kraemer was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case decided in 1948 that dealt with racial discrimination in housing. The case involved African American homeowners, the Shelleys, who purchased a home in a restricted neighborhood in St. Louis, Missouri. The neighborhood had a restrictive covenant, a legally binding agreement among property owners that prohibited the sale of property to African Americans.

When a neighboring property owner, Louis Kraemer, sought to enforce the restrictive covenant to prevent the Shelleys from occupying their home, the case made its way to the Supreme Court. The Court ultimately ruled that state courts could not enforce racially restrictive covenants as they violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

The decision in Shelley v. Kraemer was a significant step towards dismantling racially discriminatory housing practices and upholding the rights of African Americans to purchase property in any neighborhood. It paved the way for future civil rights cases challenging segregation and discrimination in housing, ultimately contributing to the broader Civil Rights Movement.