Mailbag: Finding answers to hate rhetoric

RE: “Burbank Unified officials call for unity and ‘open, honest’ post-election dialogue”

In such divided political times, it is encouraging to read about how Burbank Unified officials are urging their students to participate in “open, honest dialogue.” As a mother whose daughter will be starting school here next year, I was relieved to see that officials were not only addressing the discontent felt by kids, but also acknowledging that for any member of the population who feels “different,” they may be especially upset or even scared.

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I feel that this is especially true now for a large part of the immigrant population in Burbank and beyond. I hope that the children who are undocumented and documented alike feel that their schools are a safe haven, and that the rise in hate crimes we’ve witnessed in other parts of the state and country will not be tolerated in Burbank. I think this is the time to urge Rep. Adam Schiff to continue to speak out against the hate rhetoric that has been part of the president-elect’s campaign, especially when it comes to issues that affect our students, be that DACA and comprehensive immigration reform, LGBT equality or public education funding. As our country fractures over differences, we must stay vocal and encourage our representatives to support legislation that could bring us together, instead of ripping us further apart.

Ally Weinberg
Burbank

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Opening nature to the people

Kudos to Rep. Adam Schiff for continuing to make the Rim of the Valley a priority for the 28th District and the greater Los Angeles area. This proposed expansion of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, a model for cooperation between federal and local land management agencies and broadly supported by local residents, would benefit our communities by protecting more open spaces, wildlife and historic sites and expanding outdoor recreational opportunities. National parks, nature and enjoying the outdoors unite people of all backgrounds, and have the potential to gain widespread and bipartisan support, especially with the leadership of the region’s Congressional delegation spanning from Santa Clarita to downtown L.A. The National Parks Conservation Assn. and the Rim of the Valley Coalition will continue to work with our delegation to make the expansion a reality and to bring the national park experience closer to the region’s 17 million residents.

Dennis G. Arguelles, M.A.
Los Angeles Program Manager
National Parks Conservation Assn.
Los Angeles

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Meetings nearly fly under radar

Burbank Unified held a special education parent focus meeting on Monday, Nov. 30, and I, a parent of a special-needs middle schooler, almost missed it. This meeting was the first of two to discuss parent concerns and how they might be addressed as part of the development of a new master plan for special education to guide the district for the next several years. I almost missed it because of the lack of notice — and apparently so did a lot of other parents. With the district serving nearly 2,000 special education students, there were only about 30 parents at the meeting. Supt. Matt Hill did have information about it in his e-blast to those parents who knew to sign up for such a thing, and there was information posted on the district website, but it’s not nearly enough especially when there are so many options. Where was the email invitation from the special education department? Or the announcement in the Burbank Leader? Where was the principal “all-call” about it? Or fliers in any of my three schools’ front offices? If the district is going to have important districtwide events — such as this one or GATE, ELAC and DAC meetings — and they want parents to come, they need to do a better job of getting the word out. Parents, the second focus meeting is on Wednesday, Dec. 14. RSVP on the district’s website.

Kelly Duenckel
Burbank