The Fight for Equality in Education in the United States
Key Vocabulary
§ Court Cases
o Mendez v. Westminster School District
§ 1946 case that declared the segregation of Mexican Americans in Santa
Ana, California unlawful.
o Brown v. Board of Education
§ 1954 Supreme Court case that established that ‘separate but equal’ schools
were unconstitutional
o Lau v. Nichols
§ 1971 Supreme Court case that established that students with little or no
English language abilities be provided with the tools and opportunities
necessary to further develop those skills
§ People & Groups
o Aspira
§ a Latino organization in New York City dedicated to encouraging Puerto
Rican students to stay in school
o American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
§ a group committed to promoting the rights of American citizens
o Brown Berets
§ a paramilitary group who fought for minority rights that was often
confrontational
o Sal Castro
§ a teacher at Lincoln High School who helped students organize the 1968
walkouts
o Cesar Chavez
§ a Chicano activist who created the United Farm Workers and fought for
the rights of Latinos using the phrase “¡Sí se puede!”
o Paula Crisostomo
§ a student at Lincoln High School who helped organize the 1968 walkouts
o Moctesuma Esparza
§ a student at UCLA who helped organize the 1968 walkouts
o Carlos Montes
§ co-founder of the Brown Berets, a paramilitary organization fighting for
minority rights
§ East LA Blowouts / Chicano Blowouts
o Walkouts organized by Chicano student leaders in East LA to demand a better
education
§ Advocate (v.)
o to support
§ Chicano (n. & adj.)
o Mexican American
§ East LA (during the 1960s)
o poor, predominantly Mexican American neighborhood that housed crumbling
schools with high drop out rates
Created by J. Maple, Fall 2012