Hector G. Godinez (July 1, 1924 – May 16, 1999) was a civil rights leader and the first

Mexican-American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...

postmaster in the United States. He was appointed by

President John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until assassination of Joh ...

as postmaster of Santa Ana in 1961. He was subsequently promoted to Southern California district manager for the

U.S. Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U. ...

, where he managed more than 44,000 employees and had an operating budget of $750 million. During World War II, Godinez served under

General George Patton George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, and the Third United States Army in France ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

as a Tank Commander in the Third Army. After being wounded, Godinez was honorably discharged and returned home in 1945 as a decorated war hero with five

battle stars A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

, one

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

, and one

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

for heroic achievement at the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...

. In 1946, Godinez began his 48-year career with the U.S. Postal Service, starting as a letter carrier and working his way up to a top leadership position. Mr. Godinez was a founder of the League of Latin American Citizens, a group dedicated to improving conditions for Americans of Mexican descent. Godinez was a key figure in ending discrimination against Mexican American children in Orange County schools. Specifically, Godinez and other activists were responsible for

Mendez v. Westminster ''Mendez, ''et al'' v. Westminister icSchool District of Orange County, et al'', 64 F.Supp. 544 (S.D. Cal. 1946), ''aff'd'', 161 F.2d 774 (9th Cir. 1947) (en banc), was a 1947 federal court case that challenged Mexican remedial schools in four dist ...

—a landmark lawsuit that took on the establishment in Orange County so that schools would not be segregated. Because of this lawsuit, California desegregated its schools 6 years before the rest of the Nation. On the national level,

was the basis for

Brown v. Board of Education ''Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka'', 347 U.S. 483 (1954), was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregat ...

Honors and awards

Godinez Fundamental High School Hector Godinez Fundamental High School is a public high school in Santa Ana, California, and is part of the Santa Ana Unified School District The Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) is a school district in Orange County, California that ser ...

in Santa Ana, California, is named in Hector Godinez' honor. The public high school opened in 2007 and is part of the Santa Ana Unified School District. Godinez was the recipient of the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. ...

’s Human Rights Award and the Western Region’s Community Service Award. He was among the first recipients of the Postmaster General’s Award for Executive Achievement. In 2001,

Loretta Sanchez Loretta Lorna Sanchez (born January 7, 1960) is an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1997 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she was first elected in 1996, when she defeated long-serving Repu ...

introduced H.R. 1366, ''To designate the United States Post Office building located at 3101 West Sunflower Avenue in Santa Ana, California, as the ‘Hector G. Godinez Post Office Building’.'' The bill was enacted in 2002.

Personal life

The son of field workers, Godinez was born in 1924 on the grounds of San Diego Mission. His family moved to Santa Ana in 1925, where Godinez lived for the rest of his life. Godinez was known for his collection of 50 pairs of cowboy boots and his love of Stetson hats. He was a voracious reader, especially of tomes about World War II. Godinez died at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange after a long struggle with Parkinson's disease.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Godinez, Hector 1924 births 1999 deaths American people of Mexican descent United States Army personnel of World War II Activists for Hispanic and Latino American civil rights People from Santa Ana, California Deaths from Parkinson's disease Neurological disease deaths in California California postmasters League of United Latin American Citizens activists