SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Before the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Brown v. The Board of Education, a lesser-known legal battle occurred in Southern California, which helped set the stage for the civil rights victory that ultimately ended segregation across the country.
Mendez v. Westminster took place seven years prior before Brown v. Board of Education. The Orange County case came to be after Sylvia Mendez was denied admission to a white school and was told she had to go to the “Mexican” school.
Mendez’s father, Gonzalo Mendez, along with four other families filed a class action lawsuit against four Orange County school districts after their children faced similar discrimination.
Sylvia Mendez, now 88 years old, still lives in Orange County. During a recent visit to the Mendez Monument Park in Westminster, a site that pays tribute to her parents, Mendez reflected on her father’s work to ensure equal access to education for all Californians.
“When my father fought for equal education, he wasn’t just fighting for Latinos, he was fighting for everyone,” Mendez said.
Her father’s hard-work paid off when a judge ruled that having separate schools for Mexicans was unconstitutional. This led to California becoming the first state in the nation to end school segregation.
“Maybe why nobody knows about it is because the integration went so peaceful — nothing like what happened in the south where they had dogs and the police fighting,” Mendez noted.
The judge’s ruling was cited as evidence in Brown v. Board of Education, but hasn’t received the same attention in schools. Which is what a bipartisan pair of Orange County lawmakers is looking to change.
“California students would benefit from learning the historical link between Mendez v. Westminster and Brown v. Board of Education,” said Assembly member Tri Ta.
Ta authored AB 1805, which would require the Mendez case to be taught in all California public schools.
A similar bill was vetoed back in 2008 by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
“I have consistently vetoed legislation that has attempted to mandate specific details or events into areas of instruction,” said the former governor.
“It’s such an important lesson to be learned by all Californians that but for a courageous family, but for a courageous father who wasn’t going to accept the fact that his children would have to go to a segregated school, we might still be in the situation where schools are segregated,” said State Senator Tom Umberg, who’s represented Westminster since 1990.
Mendez continues to travel the state and country to teach students about her family’s legacy. She testified in committee hearings in support of AB 1805 to finally have her father’s fight for equality enshrined at California schools.
“I’m so excited that what I’ve been working on for more than 20 years to get into the curriculum or into a schoolbook where the students will learn about it – it might happen,” Mendez said.
AB 1805 has received overwhelming bipartisan support with no registered opposition. The bill is expected to land on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk once lawmakers resume work in August.