At the recent reopening of the historic Hunt Library, the Museum of Teaching and Learning (MOTAL) exhibition, A Class Action: The Grassroots Struggle for School Desegregation in California, caught visitors’ attention as they stepped through the library’s doors. Open through October 13, 2024, the award-winning traveling exhibition tells the story of the famous civil rights court case Mendez et al. v. Westminster et al., which ended school segregation in California and paved the way for national desegregation. A day before the display debuted at the newly-refurbished library, I had a chance to interview Greta Nagel, CEO and President of MOTAL, and Pat Casey, MOTAL Board Member, about the history of their independent non-profit organization, and to discuss their most recent iteration of A Class Action.

MOTAL began as a project of the California State University, Long Beach Foundation under Nagel. She explained that the museum has dedicated itself to educating people “ages 9 to 109” about education through exhibitions, events, articles, and podcasts that share stories about significant people and key events related to teaching and learning. “We’re interested in bringing food for thought to people about the history of education and how education happens in all cultures,” said Nagel, who was a founding member.

The museum has been collecting education-related objects since 2006 and has accepted many artifacts over the years. Nagel recalled some of the first items the museum received: “One man brought his grandfather’s brass school bell, and a woman arrived with her mother’s woven lunch basket. It was from when her mom rode sidesaddle to her job teaching all the kids in a one-room schoolhouse. Someone else gave the Skywriter typewriter used to write her master’s thesis, and another person provided a stereoscope with a box full of photographic slides that offered a trip around the world.’ The most recent acquisition was a pair of Dick and Jane books from the 1950s. Now, with storage space being so precious, we can’t accept any additional artifacts unless they are very tiny objects with a great big story.” In 2013, MOTAL opened its first public headquarters and mini-museum in a Fullerton office complex, where some of its collected artifacts were put on display.

In 2008, through a complex collaboration with five other sponsoring agencies, MOTAL prepared its third exhibit, titled A Class Action: The Grassroots Struggle for School Desegregation in California, to highlight a powerful story surrounding a court case from Orange County history – Mendez et al. v. Westminster et al. “Visitors to this exhibit not only learn about the landmark court case that set important precedents for the nation, but they also understand many things about the causes and effects of segregation in our society and our schools,” said Pat Casey, who not only serves as a MOTAL Board member but has also volunteered as a guide for school children and has trained docents for the exhibition in years past.

This exhibit, in various formats, has moved from place to place, but it all started at the historic Santa Ana Courthouse. Nagel explained that OC Parks was MOTAL’s first big partner. From 2010 to 2011, the displays covered 5,000 square feet at the courthouse. According to Casey, the MOTAL team put together a tour that had interactive activities so that they could bring students through and give them an experience to help them understand the historic court case.

“As we became a traveling exhibition, we traveled up to San Francisco and down to San Diego,” said Nagel. “The Hunt Library is probably our smallest venue. This exhibit started with 12 school desks from the 1940s, and now it’s down to one. It’s just a matter of space, but the story remains.”

“The five families that fought this case left a legacy. It took five marginalized families working together who were really, really concerned about the futures of their children,” explained Casey. “The Mendez, Palomino, Ramirez, Estrada, and Guzman families saw a school setting where their children would not be able to handle high school curriculum. So many of them realized that their students weren’t going to get the education that they needed, and so they discussed this; they were concerned about it. They repeatedly tried to get their students into American schools, but they were turned down; what was clear to them was that the Plessy v. Ferguson decision from about 1896 said ‘separate was equal,’ but it wasn’t. Fortunately, Mr. Mendez, listening well to them and being concerned about his own children, knew of a talented civil rights lawyer named David Marcus.”

According to Casey, Marcus agreed to take the case, but it had to be a class action. The court case brought families together. “From what I’ve heard from the adult children of some of the families, they then met in each other’s homes secretly; they kept rotating the house where the meeting was going to be. They did not want the school districts to know what they were up to,” said Casey. “When it came time for the actual hearing, those who went up to Los Angeles to attend the hearing risked losing a day’s wage or more than one day’s wage for just being there.”

Touring the exhibition space with Casey and Nagel, I learned that the plaintiffs won the first decision. Then, it was appealed by the representatives of the four school districts involved: Westminster, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, and El Modena. In 1947, the judge in the court of appeals upheld the decision. “This meant children with Spanish last names now had the right to attend American schools and no longer had to attend separate schools. This meant they had the opportunity to get an education that would prepare them for college,” said Nagel.

“Many children watched their parents fight for fair treatment. They might not have understood all of the issues, but their parents’ courage and willingness to sacrifice told the children that they were loved, that they were members of a community, that education was important, and that their rights as citizens could not be denied,” explained Casey. “One of the most important lessons we can take away from this exhibit is that we should always fight for what we think is right and that we should not ignore injustices simply because they may not affect us directly.”

MOTAL’s A Class Action: The Grassroots Struggle for School Desegregation in California exhibit is on display until October 13 at the Hunt Library, located at 201 S. Basque Avenue. The library is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10am to 4pm, and every third Saturday 9am to 3pm. To learn more about the Museum of Teaching & Learning, visit http://www.motal.org.