The Fight to Go to School

Sylvia Mendez could not have been happier. It was September 1944, and the 8-year-old was about to register for third grade at a new school in Westminster, California. 

Just a few months before, Sylvia, her parents, and her younger brothers had moved to the town to run a local farm. Now her Aunt Soledad, who also lived on the farm with her husband and daughters, was taking all the kids to the Westminster Main School for the first time.

Sylvia Mendez could not have been happier. It was September 1944. The 8-year-old was about to register for third grade at a new school in Westminster, California.

Just a few months before, Sylvia, her parents, and her younger brothers had moved to the town to run a local farm. Her Aunt Soledad also lived on the farm with her husband and daughters. Now Aunt Soledad was taking all the kids to the Westminster Main School for the first time.

“My mother had bought us all new clothes. We were so excited to go to school,” Mendez recalls today. The children never expected their visit to help set in motion a series of events that would change education in America forever. 

The official they met said the school would accept Aunt Soledad’s daughters, who were light skinned. But Sylvia and her brothers, who had dark skin, hair, and eyes, would have to go to the town’s “Mexican school” a few blocks away.

Furious, Aunt Soledad marched the kids home, refusing to enroll any of them. Sylvia’s parents, Gonzalo and Felicitas, were also outraged. They were hardworking American citizens. The Mendezes were determined to fight back—and would eventually join with other families to do so in court.

Their lawsuit, Mendez v. Westminster School District, would ultimately lead to the end of school segregation in California. It would also help pave the way for an even bigger victory: the outlawing of segregation in public schools throughout the United States.

“My mother had bought us all new clothes. We were so excited to go to school,” Mendez recalls today. The children never expected their visit to help set in motion a series of events that would change education in America forever.

The official they met said the school would accept Aunt Soledad’s daughters, who were light skinned. But Sylvia and her brothers had dark skin, hair, and eyes. They would have to go to the town’s “Mexican school” a few blocks away.

Furious, Aunt Soledad marched the kids home. She refused to enroll any of them. Sylvia’s parents, Gonzalo and Felicitas, were also outraged. They were hardworking American citizens. The Mendezes were determined to fight back. And they would eventually join with other families to do so in court.

Their lawsuit was Mendez v. Westminster School District. It would ultimately lead to the end of school segregation in California. It also would help pave the way for an even bigger victory: the outlawing of segregation in public schools throughout the United States.

By the mid 1940s, Mexican Americans were already fighting for equal rights throughout the Southwest. Groups of parents in Texas, Arizona, and California had successfully sued their school districts, forcing them to integrate. Still, school segregation was practiced almost everywhere else.

Many Mexican American families were determined to right that wrong, however. In Orange County, where Sylvia lived, parents and community groups were already appearing before school boards to demand integration. But they were largely getting nowhere.

By the mid 1940s, Mexican Americans were already fighting for equal rights throughout the Southwest. Groups of parents in Texas, Arizona, and California had successfully sued their school districts. They had forced the districts to integrate. Still, school segregation was practiced almost everywhere else.

Many Mexican American families were determined to right that wrong. In Orange County, where Sylvia lived, parents and community groups were already appearing before school boards to demand integration. But they were largely getting nowhere.

Finally, a group that Sylvia’s father was part of hired a lawyer to challenge school segregation in court. The lawyer, David Marcus, had represented other Mexican American clients before. To win, he said, several families should join together in a class-action lawsuit.

Sylvia’s father was one of several community members who drove around Orange County with Marcus, looking for families to sign on. Meanwhile, Sylvia’s mother took over running the farm and helped get parents to sign a petition against their school board.

In the end, five families from four Orange County school districts came together for the lawsuit. In March 1945, it was filed on behalf of the families as Mendez v. Westminster School District. The plaintiffs in the suit argued that forcing their children to attend separate schools denied them equal protection under the law—a right guaranteed by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. 

Finally, a group that Sylvia’s father was part of hired a lawyer named David Marcus to challenge school segregation in court. Marcus had represented other Mexican American clients before. He said that to win, several families should join together in a class-action lawsuit.

Sylvia’s father and other community members drove around Orange County with Marcus. They were looking for families to sign on. Meanwhile, Sylvia’s mother took over running the farm. And she helped get parents to sign a petition against their school board.

In the end, five families from four Orange County school districts came together for the lawsuit. In March 1945, it was filed on behalf of the families as Mendez v. Westminster School District. The plaintiffs in the suit argued that forcing their children to attend separate schools denied them equal protection under the law. That was a right guaranteed by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The trial began on July 5. Marcus called the parents to the witness stand to explain how they had tried to enroll their children in their neighborhood schools but had been denied. For their part, school officials claimed that the Mexican American students had been placed in separate schools because they didn’t speak English well and would have held back the other learners. But Marcus called two students to the stand to prove that claim false. Not only did they, like many of their classmates, speak English fluently, officials had never even tested them.

All in all, members of 13 different families testified about the discrimination they had faced. When Sylvia’s mother, Felicitas, took the stand, she explained: “We always tell our children they are Americans. They shouldn’t be segregated.” 

Through skillful questioning, Marcus got school officials to show that they believed people of Mexican heritage were inferior to White people. One superintendent admitted that he thought Mexicans were far less intelligent and that they should be segregated in society. 

Importantly, Marcus also called experts to the stand to show that separating children based on their ethnicity was damaging to them. “Segregation, by its very nature, is a constant reminder of inferiority, of not being wanted,” one longtime educator said in her testimony.

The trial began on July 5. Marcus called the parents to the witness stand. They explained how they had tried to enroll their children in their neighborhood schools but had been denied. For their part, school officials claimed that the Mexican American students had been placed in separate schools because they did not speak English well. They said the students would have held back the other learners. But Marcus called two students to the stand to prove that claim false. Like many of their classmates, they spoke English fluently. The officials had never even tested them.

All in all, members of 13 different families testified about the discrimination they had faced. Sylvia’s mother, Felicitas, took the stand. She explained: “We always tell our children they are Americans. They shouldn’t be segregated.”

Through skillful questioning, Marcus got school officials to show that they believed people of Mexican heritage were inferior to White people. One superintendent admitted that he thought Mexicans were far less intelligent. He thought they should be segregated in society.

Importantly, Marcus also called experts to the stand to show that separating children based on their ethnicity was damaging to them. “Segregation, by its very nature, is a constant reminder of inferiority, of not being wanted,” one longtime educator said in her testimony.

On February 18, 1946, the judge who had heard the case issued a decision: By segregating Mexican American children, he said, the school districts had violated the students’ 14th Amendment rights to “equal protection of the law.” The meaning of the judge’s words was clear: Separate schools can never be equal schools.

But the fight wasn’t over. The Orange County schools appealed the judge’s decision to a higher court. In April 1947, that court upheld the Mendez victory. The case prompted California Governor Earl Warren to sign a bill banning racial segregation in California schools just two months later. 

From there, the case would trigger bolder demands for racial equality, says historian David-James Gonzales of Brigham Young University in Utah. He is an expert on the Mexican American struggle for civil rights. “The whole legal basis for segregating people by race was undermined by Mendez,” he explains. Crucially, the case helped pave the way for the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka—and the 1954 ruling on it by the U.S. Supreme Court—which banned segregation in all American schools (see sidebar, below).

On February 18, 1946, the judge who had heard the case issued a decision. He said that by segregating Mexican American children, the school districts had violated the students’ 14th Amendment rights to “equal protection of the law.” The meaning of the judge’s words was clear. Separate schools can never be equal schools.

But the fight was not over. The Orange County schools appealed the judge’s decision to a higher court. In April 1947, that court upheld the Mendez victory. The case prompted California Governor Earl Warren to sign a bill banning racial segregation in California schools just two months later.

From there, the case would trigger bolder demands for racial equality, says David-James Gonzales. He is a historian at Brigham Young University in Utah, and an expert on the Mexican American struggle for civil rights. “The whole legal basis for segregating people by race was undermined by Mendez,” he explains. Crucially, the case helped pave the way for the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, and the 1954 ruling on it by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Brown ruling banned segregation in all American schools (see sidebar, below).