Chapman University
Commemorates

Mendez v. Westminster 60th Anniversary & U.S. Postage Stamp Unveiling The Landmark Case That Desegregated California's Schools Saturday, April 14, 2007 9 a.m. to Noon Bush Conference Center, Beckman Hall 404 On the Chapman University campus For information call: (714) 532-7701 Free Admission—but space is limited so reservations are required.

Thanks to the brave battle launched by the Mendez family in the 1940s, California became the first state in the nation to desegregate its schools. At the time, California—like many states—had segregated schools, movie theaters, even swimming pools. When third-grader Sylvia Mendez, accompanied by her siblings, was not allowed to attend the all-white Westminster school because she was Mexican, her parents, Gonzalo and Felicitas Mendez, sued the school district—and the rest is history. The 1947 Mendez v. Westminster case, a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of more than 5,000 Mexican American students in Orange County, made California the first state in the nation to end school segregation, paving the way for the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling that desegregated all U.S. schools in 1954.

Witness—Participate—Learn:
Official Postage Stamp Unveiling

• Be present at the first official unveiling of the U.S. Postal Service’s new stamp commemorating "Mendez v. Westminster: Toward Equality in Our Schools."

Meet the people who lived—and changed—history:

• The Mendez, Estrada, Guzman, Palomino and Ramirez families—courageous plaintiffs in the 1947 Mendez v. Westminster case.
• The Munemitsu family, Japanese Americans who were interned during World War II.
• Minnijean Brown Trickey and Dr. Terrence Roberts—members of the Little Rock Nine who integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Ark., under the protection of 1,200 armed guards ordered by President Eisenhower in 1957. 2007 marks the 50-year anniversary of that historic event.

And more:

• Screening of Sandra Robbie's Emmy-winning documentary Mendez vs. Westminster: For All The Children.
• See the Mendez v. Westminster Magical History Tour Bus.
• Take a self-guided Civil Rights Walking Tour through Orange, with provided map/brochure, of locations where history happened.
• Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon, enjoy a special performance of The "Mexican" O.C.—a critically acclaimed original play by Breath of Fire Theatre Co. Reservations required for this separate event.

For those unable to attend the stamp unveiling, the Mendez stamp will be on display in the Chapman quad from noon to 1 p.m. Mendez plaintiff families, Minnijean Brown Trickey and Dr. Terrence Roberts will be there to greet visitors.

This special event is co-sponsored by the Chapman University Committee on Diversity, the Chapman University School of Education, the Chapman University School of Law, Sandra Robbie and the Mendez v. Westminster Magical History Tour, the National Conference of Puerto Rican Women, and the United States Postal Service.