Mendez v. Westminster ISD challenged school segregation in which state?

• A. Texas
• B. New Mexico
• C. California
• D. Arizona

Answer: (C)

This question tests your knowledge of where the landmark case Mendez v. Westminster challenged school segregation and helped set the stage for later desegregation. The case took place in California, specifically in the Westminster School District in Orange County, during the 1940s. Families of Mexican and Mexican American students argued that separating students by ethnicity violated equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. The federal court agreed, striking down the segregation in Westminster and related districts in California. This ruling showed that substantial state and local policies separating students by ethnicity could be unconstitutional, and it influenced the momentum toward nationwide desegregation, culminating in Brown v. Board of Education. So the correct state is California, not Texas, New Mexico, or Arizona.