The Deeper Learning Podcast | The story of Mendez v. Westminster

Produced by the Orange County Department of Education, The Deeper Learning Podcast explores education and learning at a deeper level. With each episode, you’ll hear compelling narratives about people who have pursued answers to life’s important questions and strived to make a difference, sometimes against great odds.

The Deeper Learning PodcastOur first episode centers on a landmark court case that shattered many of the legal justifications for segregating public schools and laid the foundation for the famous Brown v. Board of Education decision. And it all started with one family from Orange County.

To start listening, you can click here or on the graphic at any time. But we hope you’ll subscribe to The Deeper Learning Podcast on iTunes, where new episodes will be posted.

Listen in your car. Listen on a walk. Listen while doing the dishes. Listen with your class. There are numerous opportunities throughout the day to engage in deeper learning, and you can share feedback with an iTunes review or by emailing communications@ocde.us.

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Here are some of the resources referenced in Episode 01:

  • Bernstein, S. (2011). Bridges of Reform: Interracial Civil Rights Activism in Twentieth-Century Los Angeles. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Strum, P. (2010). Mendez v Westminster: School Desegregation and Mexican-American Rights. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.
  • Tonatiuh, D. (2014). Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation. New York: Abrams.
  • Wenkart, R. D. (2016). Mendez v. Westminster School District. Inquiry and Analysis, December 2016.
  • Photo of Mendez v. Westminster painting located in the California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Santa Ana, Calif.

Painting in the 4th District Court of Appeals Art Gallery