Westminster, is brought back to life through the story and illustrations of duncan tonatiuh in his childrens book separate is never equal. By students of felicitas and gonzalo mendez high school foreword by sylvia mendez. The mendez case was important in the history of the united states because it set the precedence for passing other laws that protected the rights of minorities in schools. The campaign blew up, and dias gathered more than 10,000 books and even secured a book deal of her own. It is unfortunate that the case is not remembered better. Board of education, sylvia mendez and her parents helped end school segregation in california. Sylvias case, which was decided in the federal courts in california, preceded brown by about eight years. Board of education remains much more famous, mendez v. In 1943, at age 30, he became a naturalized citizen of the united states and was a relatively welloff vegetable farmer. Express personal opinions about key facts, the arguments, decision, and impact of mendez v. Its considered to be one of the first schools in the state to. Learn how to use internet and class resources to research mendez vs.
The mendez family fought school segregation 8 years before. After 11 months the supreme court ruled that segregation of public transportation was illegal. This entry was posted in childrens literature and tagged brown vs. On april 1947 there was a decision ruling on the mendez vs. District court for the southern district of california.
The opinion of the ninth circuit court of appeals reads as if the judge were planning for plessy v. Adminstrator explained to soledad that her two children could register at the white elementary school since they were half white, light skinned and french last names. Sylvia mendez and her familys fight for desegregation. They fought not for their rights but for their childrens nonsegregated and equal lives since many of these workers were parents. Historic in its own right, mendez was critical to the strategic choices and legal analysis used in arguing brown and in shaping the ideas of a young naacp attorney, thurgood marshall. Thurgood marshall represented sylvia mendez and linda brown.
Mendez says that her parents were disappointed no one told them gracias for fighting the good fight. One of lulacs most notable initiatives was the preschool program known as the little school of the 400, which was designed to teach children 400 basic english words. School desegregation and mexicanamerican rights, at busboys and poets. Fifteen years later in 1946, a court reached the same result in mendez v. In march of 1945, five families in orange county, california, brought a class action lawsuit against four school districts on behalf of their own children and five thousand other children who were forced to attend segregated schools for mexican children. Gonzalo asked his sister, sally vidaurri, to take their children to school. Mexican american families in california secured an early legal victory in the push against school segregation. Soon after we moved to westminster, our aunt took us kids down to enroll us in the local schools.
Marshall used some of the same arguments from mendez to win brown v. Instead, she would have to keep walking down the street to the mexican school two wooden shacks on a. This website is dedicated to telling the story, along with providing documentation for students and historians, of the mendez et al v westminster et al court case. Westminster, which desegregated california schools years before the. Westminster, becoming the first federal court to order the desegregation of schools.
It desegregated in 1944, three years before the mendez vs. Westminster 1946, which ended the segregation of mexican americans in california schools. Westminster is an important case in american civil rights. Answer comprehension questions while watching the videos of mendez v. Dole was named president of the provisional government of hawaii 18941898 that was formed after the americanled coup. Silvia mendez and her brothers went with their aunt soledad vidaurri and her two children to enroll at 17th street school in westminster.
Mendez v westminster california civil rights story. If you are interested in mexican american civil rights or in african american civil rights, you should read this book. Aug 30, 2015 in 1931, a county court in lemon grove, california ordered a school district to stop segregating its white and latino students. If our applause isnt loud enough, then well let others convince you. A landmark case in the struggle for equality was westminster school dist. Historic preservation group wants to save orange county. Westminster plays an underappreciated role in the struggle for civil rights in the united states. Mendez, his mother, and her other four children moved to westminster, california, in 1919. Sep 18, 2019 mexican american families in california secured an early legal victory in the push against school segregation.
Westminster schools, mexicanamericans, race and poverty, school segregation, separate but equal, sylvia mendez on september 2, 2015 by sandsk2014. For many decades, this historic legal victory was relatively unknown among constitutional historians and educators around the country. Legal segregation in california schools did exist for two other groups. Westminster ruling, which abolished segregation in california schools. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The mendez case was important in the history of the united. Westminster school district, discusses the 1947 court case, which led to the desegregation of californias public schools. Once this case was won, it opened the door for desegregation of other schools throughout the country, and paved the way for the landmark case brown v. But from this article, it seems that most people did not really know that mexican segregation was the norm back in the 1900s.
Gonzalos children were sent to the mexican school because they were too darkskinned and disapproved for their spanish. Mendezs father, gonzalo, was at the center of mendez vs. Westminster was funded in part by a grants from the california civil liberties public education program and the wells fargo foundation. Sep 23, 2010 on august 18, 2010, author philippa strum gave a talk about her book, mendez v. Compare the impact of these two cases on ending public school segregation in the united states. The school officials said that they would enroll my cousins because they had a frenchsounding last name and pale skin, but we, with a. Vimeo gives control freaks the power to tweak every aspect of their embedded videos. Strum brings the people and debates of the case vividly to life, particularly the dedication of the latino parents at the center of the case who fought for equal education for their children in public schools. Now, mendez, who speaks at schools throughout the region, says its her mission to. For instance, in the year 1947, the federal state passed the anderson bill. Gonzalo and felicitas mendez and their children moved to the small town of westminster.
In 1955, after rosa parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a city bus, dr. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Sallys children were accepted because of their surname and their light complexion. In the first booklength discussion of this case, strum analyzes how world war ii. We are going to be looking more into the history of the trial mendez vs. May 23, 20 mendez vs westminster since i was born in a time where things were very peaceful within the states, i dont really know much about segregation and other civil issues. Westminster, as well as how and why it started and similarities between both the mendez case, as well as the brown case. Westminister sic school district of orange county, et al, 64 f. Since the 1930s the naacp had been fighting segregation in mclaurin vs oklahoma state it was found that by making separate areas for blacks it gives them a badge of inferiority compared to whites. Westminster, the first case about school segregation to be successfully challenged in federal court.
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