Mendez v. Westminster
School Desegregation for Mexican-Americans
The Basics
- 3 Mendez children were not allowed to be admitted to the "white school" (1943)
- Blamed on biological differences, poor English, or that they were too dirty
- Supreme Court recently had declared that separate but equal was okay
- Mexicans saw themselves as white, didn't think you could discrimination within a race
- Very under the radar, not much media attention
The Result
- Mendez family wins the case - separate but equal is not equal in an education setting
- Set the scene for Brown v. Board of Education decision later
- Inspires other civil rights organizations