En Honor de

"GONZALO MENDEZ"

Invitamos a todos a que nos acompañen en este evento familiar en los terrenos de el
                                                        APACHE GOLD CASINO.

Felicitamos a los dos ganadores de esta competencia quienes fueron declarados por el sector escolar.
                                                       Julian A. Guerrero y Briana Ortega

Gonzalo Méndez
By: Julian A. Guerrero

Gonzalo Méndez and his wife Felicitas, were instrumental in changing the course of history regarding segregation in schools in California and the Southwest. Mr & Mrs Méndez, nearly 60 years ago, along with family, parents of children in segregated schools, the community of LA and civil rights groups were successful in convincing the Courts that segregation had no place un schools or in society.

Segregation in practice, if not in law, included housing on the "Mexican" side of town, "Mexican" seats in movie theaters, swimming at the public pool were the same day the pool was to be drained. But the most tragic form of segregation was in public education.

In every California community schools were segregated, either by the one room or a whole school exclusively designated for "Mexicans". School districts argued that segregation was necessary due to the learning ability of the children. Most viewed Mexicans in a negative way and thought the Mexican kids would feel "inferior" if they were to go to an integrated school because of economic and social status.

In Orange County, California, Gonzalo Mendez, a tenant farmer and his wife Felicitas, along with a group of Mexican American World War II veterans, asked the pertinent question to their communities, "If we are good enough to fight and die among Anglos, then why are our children not good enough to attend the same schools as yours?". In early 1945 they filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Federal Court against four Orange School Districts seeking an injunction that would order their school’s integration. Two years later, after a great deal of effort by the Mendez family and community organizers, school segregation was no more in California- On April 14,1947, the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled that school districts could not make children go to separate schools simply because they were of Mexican descent.

I recently watched a movie on the HBO channel titled "WALKOUT". It depicts the Latino movement in schools close to 20 years later where even though schools could not keep children out of certain schools simply because they are of Mexican descent the problem still existed regarding the level of education offered to Latinos. It was a proud moment in history and without us having a voice to be heard I may have not had the opportunity and privilege to write what I am writing about today. I hope to join the proud Hispanic professionals when I graduate in 2009 and attend the Naval Academy or a credited university.