Voices that Walked
In the fight for equity in education, San Jose stood tall — and walked out.
In 1968, Roosevelt Junior High School in became the site of a powerful community and student-led protest. Fueled by racism in the classroom and unequal treatment of Mexican American students, the walkout was organized by Sofía Mendoza, teachers, parents, and a coalition of students ready to demand better.
They weren’t just protesting bad teachers — they were confronting a system that punished students for speaking Spanish, overlooked their histories, and dismissed their potential. Their walkout forced the school district to listen and marked a turning point in Chicano activism.
That same year, during commencement at San José State University, a group of Chicano students walked out in protest — calling attention to the deep inequities they faced on campus. It was a bold, unprecedented act in California at the time, and it marked a turning point in the fight for representation in higher education.
Their action spotlighted the glaring lack of Chicano faculty, low enrollment of Mexican American students, and the broader exclusion of Chicanos from academic life. What became known as the Chicano Commencement Walkout helped ignite lasting conversations around equity, access, and cultural visibility — not just at SJSU, but across the state.
It wasn’t just a protest — it was a powerful declaration of presence.
In San Jose, walking out was how we stepped into our power.