Mendez Historic Freedom Trail and Monument in Westminster, California

Mendez Historic Freedom Trail and Monument in Westminster, California

In 1944, Gonzalo and Felicitas Mendez attempted to enroll their children—Sylvia and her two brothers—at 17th Street Elementary, which only accepted white students. The Westminster School District refused and instead suggested that the Mendez children attend Hoover Elementary, a segregated “Mexican school” housed in a run-down building. Across the United States, schools were segregated not only for African Americans but also for Hispanic American…