The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) was incorporated in Texas in 1968. MALDEF was modeled after the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Legal Defense Fund (NAACP7LDF) as a civil rights organization to protect the rights of Mexican Americans using the judicial system. MALDEF has evolved from a grassroots first-generation Mexican American legal organization to a diverse, more corporate law firm protecting the rights of all Latino groups. MALDEF's civil rights legal history is grounded in the protection of voting rights, educational rights, employment protections related to national origin and citizenship status, language issues, and hate crimes. MALDEF'S mission is to foster sound public policies, laws, and programs to safeguard the civil rights of all Latinos living in the United ...