My break lights are not working?

I had a similar problem with my old '95 Camry. My back up lights wouldn't come on either. I found that there is a large black plug down by the base of the transmission. If you open the hood and look down just to the left of the battery and down towards the tranny, you should see a black plug about 3 inches long. I found if I unplugged it and cleaned all the pins with contact spray, the reverse lights would come back on. See in this photo the black plug on the right side? That's the one. I took alligator clips and put power to the pins until I found the one that made the reverse lights come on. For some strange reason the pins were not making good contact once the plug was back in. You may also want to check the wiring harness that runs along the left hinge area of your trunk. Sometimes the wire breaks due to opening and closing the trunk. If it was the actual reverse switch on the transmission, I think that the R on the shift indicator will be out as well as the reverse lights. If only the reverse lights are out, it should be a wiring issue. Just some suggestions to check out. Good luck!

Thanks @Reelin68 after reading forums i went and was looking for the failure brake light sensor because many people said that i will fry after some time and when i open it it look like new. and came to find out that the cables that go to the backing up lights the wire where broken and touching each other so i had to rewire them. now my backing up light work and its not shorting out the switch. Thanks again for the help.