When it comes to civil rights, most Americans rightly think of the many battles waged to end discrimination against African Americans. In May, the American's recognized the 50th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision Brown vs. Board of Education, which put an end to racial segregation and the continuing struggle for equality.

However, while Brown vs. Board of Education is perhaps the most well-known case of its kind, the story of ending racial segregation in schools began eight years earlier in Orange County, Calif. In 1945, the Mexican-American children of farmer Gonzalo and Felicitas Mendez were denied admission to the neighborhood elementary school. At that time, the Westminster schools — like many in California — were segregated, and the Mendez children were forced to attend a Mexican school across town. Unwilling to accept segregation, the Mendez family took the matter to court and won.

The Mendez vs. Westminster, Calif., case was an important step toward abolishing segregation in California and beyond. Following the Mendez case, California Governor Earl Warren assumed an active role in desegregating other public places such as swimming pools, movie theaters and parks. Former Governor Warren eventually became the U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice who presided over the Brown vs. Board of Education case. Thurgood Marshall, one of several attorneys who filed briefs on behalf of the Mendez case, became part of the legal team to successfully argue Brown vs. Board of Education.

As a Hispanic-serving institution, St. Edward's University is proud to present a special screening of the Emmy Award-winning PBS documentary, Mendez vs. Westminster: Para Todos Los Ninos, and discussion with writer and producer Sandra Robbie. The screening is part of the Hispanic Leadership Symposium and the campus-wide celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

• Who: Sandra Robbie, Emmy-award winning documentary writer/producer
• What: Hispanic Leadership Symposium
  
  Screening of Mendez vs. Westminster: Para Todos Los Ninos
• When: 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 5, reception follows
• Where: Maloney Room, Main Building, St. Edward's University
  
  3001 S. Congress Ave.