A landmark case ensuring education to undocumented children turns 40
This week marks the 40th anniversary of Plyler v Doe, the Supreme Court case ensuring undocumented children have access to a basic education.
This week marks the 40th anniversary of a court case that affected thousands of schoolchildren. Yet it's one that most Americans likely don't know about.
In the 1970s, a group of Texas parents who lacked legal immigration status risked deportation to fight for their children’s right to attend public school. The case went all the way to the Supreme Court, which on June 15, 1982, ruled in favor of the parents and their children.
Plyler v. Doe ensured that children living in the U.S. without legal immigration documentation could access a basic education and lead more productive lives. It also paved the way for young immigrants to become active in efforts to demand legal pathways for children who have spent most of their lives in the U.S., such as the DREAM Act and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA.
Alfredo Lopez was in elementary school in Tyler, Texas, in 1977, when his parents came to pick him up at school earlier than usual. “All I can remember is that we were sent home one day,” he told American Public Media in 2017. “And they said we couldn’t come back to school.”
In 1975, Texas had passed a statute allowing local school districts to deny enrollment to children who were not legally admitted to the country. Two years later, the Tyler Independent School District decided that it would charge annual tuition for undocumented students like Lopez. At $1,000 per student, this was far beyond the reach of undocumented families.
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