The ASSETS Podcast is releasing its first-ever TWO-PART series in January and February to reflect on the 50th anniversary of Lau v. Nichols, a landmark legal case affecting English learners and educators. On January 21, 1974, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that, under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the San Francisco Unified School District must provide non-English-speaking students with English language instruction to ensure they receive an equal education.
This ruling helped pave the way for the passing of the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 in Congress, which required that school districts take action to remove barriers to the equal participation of all students, increased funding to the Bilingual Education Act, and effectively made additional English language development instruction mandatory in public schools across the U.S.
To commemorate and reflect on this anniversary, Dr. Lawrence sat down to interview Mr. Edward Steinman, the attorney who successfully argued the Lau v. Nichols case. Mr. Steinman remains active as a civil rights attorney and also serves as a professor at the Santa Clara University School of Law. He has argued numerous times before the U.S. Supreme Court.
