Yates v. Milwaukee was a United States Supreme Court case that dealt with the issue of racial discrimination in public accommodations. The case arose when a black man named William Yates was denied service at a Milwaukee hotel. Yates sued the hotel, claiming that the hotel had violated the Fourteenth Amendment by denying him service on the basis of his race. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Yates, finding that the hotel had violated the Fourteenth Amendment by denying him service on the basis of his race. The Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment prohibited racial discrimination in public accommodations, and that the hotel had violated the Amendment by denying Yates service. The Court also held that the hotel had violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race. The Court's ruling in Yates v. Milwaukee was an important step in the fight against racial discrimination in public accommodations. The Court's decision established that the Fourteenth Amendment prohibited racial discrimination in public accommodations, and that businesses could not deny service to individuals on the basis of their race. The Court's ruling in Yates v. Milwaukee was an important step in the fight for civil rights and equality.

In Yates v. Milwaukee, the Supreme Court was asked to decide whether a city ordinance that prohibited any person from keeping or exhibiting in public an animal show for profit violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s guarantee of due process and equal protection. The majority opinion held that it did not, as long as there were reasonable grounds for believing such shows would be detrimental to public morals or health. Justice Field dissented on behalf of himself and three other justices, arguing that the ordinance was unconstitutional because it deprived citizens of their right to pursue a lawful occupation without due process of law. He argued further that if this type of regulation were allowed, then cities could pass laws prohibiting any business they deemed immoral or unhealthy—a power he believed should only rest with state legislatures rather than local governments.