Countywide : 500 Teens Discuss Ethnic Relations

More than 500 teen-agers discussed a variety of topics on ethnic relations Friday as part of an all-day symposium sponsored by the Orange County Human Relations Commission.

The symposium, called “Walk in My Shoes,” was offered at UC Irvine to foster greater understanding of the rapidly increasing ethnic diversity in Orange County schools, said Tina Fernandez, one of the organizers.

Friday’s event was the third and largest symposium in as many years, Fernandez said.

“In light of the changes in ethnic diversity in the county, and to avoid the problems that Los Angeles is dealing with, we felt we had to expand to reach more students,” she said.

Although there have not been any major ethnic clashes among students in Orange County, such as those that occurred earlier this week at North Hollywood High School, there have been isolated instances of prejudice.

During a school assembly two weeks ago at Laguna Hills High School, students said a scuffle erupted that resulted in a white student shouting a racial epithet at a black student.

“It was dealt with right away,” said Indhira Dawkins, 17. “Our principal immediately tried to find out who that student was that used ‘that word.’ And that like sent a message that it was unacceptable.”

Dawkins was one of about 60 students who attended a morning workshop on ethnic clubs on campuses, one of 20 sessions that dealt with subjects ranging from hate crimes to gang involvement.

Organizers said the ethnic clubs workshop was designed to give students a forum for expressing their views on whether such clubs increase understanding among ethnic minorities.

The students in the workshop seemed to agree that any organization that promoted racial understanding had a place on campus, but not all agreed that individual ethnic clubs were the best way to accomplish that.

Saul Tarzi, a 16-year-old student at Laguna Hills High School, said he thinks multiethnic clubs provide better understanding than single-ethnicity clubs.

“That way everybody learns about everybody else’s culture,” Tarzi said. “You know there’s always going to be people who judge by stereotypes and if they’re in their own group, they’re going to keep doing that and never learn any different.”

Rosie Manning, 16, disagreed. Manning tried unsuccessfully to form a Black Student Union at Trabuco Hills High School when she transferred there last year from Moreno Valley High School.

Manning said she was told it was against district policy to have individual ethnic clubs on campus. Instead she formed a multiethnic club that will include division for each ethnic group on campus.

But she said that falls short of her need to learn more about her culture.

“It doesn’t hit on the right door. We can’t get everything done if we’re looking at all cultures,” she said. “We need to learn who we are in our own culture and then share it with other cultures.”

Valentina Lantigua, 17, a student at Century High School in Santa Ana, said ethnic groups help students form their identity.

“Learning about your culture helps you learn about yourself,” she said. “It’s too generalized to have a multiethnic club; that doesn’t tell you anything about who you are.”

During a lunch break, students could be heard arguing the benefits of multicultural clubs as they shared what they had heard during morning sessions.

The recurring theme was that more understanding was needed among the county’s diverse ethnic populations.

As one student summarized, “it’s like Rodney King said: ‘Can’t we all just get along?’ ”