Mendez v. Westminster Case Quiz

In what year did the Mendez v. Westminster case begin?

• 1945

• 1954

• 1965

• 1896

Who was the young girl whose experience sparked the Mendez v. Westminster case?

• Rosa Parks

• Sylvia Mendez

• Linda Brown

• Ruby Bridges

Where did the Mendez family live when the events of the case began?

• Montgomery, Alabama

• Little Rock, Arkansas

• Westminster, California

• Topeka, Kansas

What was the occupation of Gonzalo and Felicitas Mendez?

• Teachers

• Lawyers

• Farm operators

• Business owners

From whom did the Mendez family lease their farm?

• A Mexican-American family

• A Japanese-American family who were interned

• A white American family

• A Filipino-American family

In what type of court was the Mendez v. Westminster case initially heard?

• The California Supreme Court

• A California Federal Court

• The U.S. Supreme Court

• A local city court

What legal argument did the attorney David Marcus use to argue against segregation in the Mendez case?

• The First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of assembly.

• The Tenth Amendment's reservation of powers to the states.

• The Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of equal protection.

• The Fifteenth Amendment's guarantee of voting rights.

What did the U.S. District Court Judge Paul McCormick decide in the Mendez v. Westminster case?

• Segregation was legal as long as facilities were equal.

• Segregation of Mexican-American students in public schools was discriminatory and should stop.

• The case should be decided by the state of California.

• Only high school segregation was unconstitutional.

What happened after the District Court's ruling in the Mendez case?

• The school districts immediately desegregated.

• The school districts appealed the decision.

• The Mendez family appealed the decision.

• The case went directly to the U.S. Supreme Court.

What action did California Governor Earl Warren take after the Mendez case?

• He vetoed a bill ending school segregation.

• He signed a bill ending school segregation in California.

• He declared the court's decision unconstitutional.

• He ignored the court's ruling.