Separate is Never Equal

Author/Illustrator: Duncan Tonatiuh

Genre: Historical Fiction

Grade level: K-3

Award: Pura Belpre Award

Sylvia was placed in a Mexican school rather than a white only school based on her ethnic background. They realized that she was being given a second class education compared to those in the white schools. They decide to appeal the schools placement and the racism is exposed because they told her they would teach her how to speak english even though she speaks perfect english. Her parent's took the battle all the way to court and encouraged other hispanic families facing similar situations to stand up and do something as well. 

This book can be used to talk about the civil rights movement. It also can be used to discuss racism. It also can be an introduction to learning about the Brown Vs. Board of education. 

The illustrations are folk art. The color scheme is more dark and the illustration fill the page. They don't do a good job of showing exactly what the characters are feeling. In a book about discrimination I believe the characters should be shown how they are feeling within the illustrations.