Affidavit for Citation in Mendez v. Westminster
9/27/1946
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This document alleges that El Modeno School District barred six-year-old Johnny Lievanos, from attending Roosevelt Grammar School in September of 1946 because he was of Mexican descent. It asserts that this was in violation of the order and judgment issued earlier that year by U.S. District Court Judge Paul J. McCormick in Mendez v. Westminster School District that barred schools in Orange County, California, from segregating students on the basis of race.
The prior year, Orange County Latino parents had joined together with the help of the United Latin American Citizens (LUCAC), to sue four local school districts – Westminster, Garden Grove, and El Modeno School Districts and the City of Santa Ana – for segregating their children and 5,000 others. The petition from the parents stated that the schools were violating students' civil rights by segregating students of "Mexican and Latin" ancestry in separate schools.
Judge McCormick concurred with the petitioners, issuing an injunction against the school districts' segregation policies. He stated that there was no justification in the laws of California to segregate Mexican children and that doing so was a "clear denial of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment."
The school districts filed an appeal, partly on the basis of a states' rights strategy. The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court upheld the District Court ruling in 1947, and the Orange County school districts dropped the case. The case resulted in the California legislature passing the Anderson bill, a measure that repealed all California school codes mandating segregation. The bill was signed by Governor Earl Warren.
Mendez v. Westminster School District landed an important blow to school segregation in California. It underscored that the struggle for civil rights in America crossed regional, racial, and ethnic lines.
The prior year, Orange County Latino parents had joined together with the help of the United Latin American Citizens (LUCAC), to sue four local school districts – Westminster, Garden Grove, and El Modeno School Districts and the City of Santa Ana – for segregating their children and 5,000 others. The petition from the parents stated that the schools were violating students' civil rights by segregating students of "Mexican and Latin" ancestry in separate schools.
Judge McCormick concurred with the petitioners, issuing an injunction against the school districts' segregation policies. He stated that there was no justification in the laws of California to segregate Mexican children and that doing so was a "clear denial of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment."
The school districts filed an appeal, partly on the basis of a states' rights strategy. The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court upheld the District Court ruling in 1947, and the Orange County school districts dropped the case. The case resulted in the California legislature passing the Anderson bill, a measure that repealed all California school codes mandating segregation. The bill was signed by Governor Earl Warren.
Mendez v. Westminster School District landed an important blow to school segregation in California. It underscored that the struggle for civil rights in America crossed regional, racial, and ethnic lines.
This primary source comes from the Records of District Courts of the United States.
National Archives Identifier: 6277751
Full Citation: Affidavit for Citation; 9/27/1946; Civil Case File 4292; Gonzalo Mendez et al v. Westminster School District of Orange County et al, 3/2/1945 - 7/18/1947; Civil Case Files, 1938 - 1995; Records of District Courts of the United States, Record Group 21; National Archives at Riverside, Perris, CA. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/affidavit-for-citation, April 28, 2025]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.
