Bias Claimed in Schools Story

The Compton Citizen’s Power Action Committee takes issue with your paper, The Los Angeles Times, and the obvious slant in an Aug. 5 article in the Long Beach section by Howard Blume, entitled “3 Emerge as Front-Runners for School Superintendent.” The article includes information about the three candidates. However, two of the candidates have accolades and compliments offered as testimonies to their achievements and experiences. Both have others say “wonderful and glowing words” about them. They have verbal tributes to their experiences and qualifications.

Your paper apparently could not locate anyone to say “wonderful and glowing words” about the third candidate, McKinley Nash. Neither did your paper give him the same amount of space about his achievements and experiences. Nor did your paper happen to find “any” questionable situations in the careers of the two aforementioned candidates. (How convenient?)

But of course, you did let us (and the rest of the world) know that McKinley Nash was “fired” for “undisclosed reasons”; “accused” of instigating a student demonstration; and “sued” for “allegedly” removing documents. And of course, you told us that McKinley Nash is African-American.

Your slant is so consistently obvious that there really was no need to tell us that he is African-American. We could tell by your paper’s unbalanced article. In the present climate of hate crimes and “fear peddling,” your paper continues to set the standard, tone and context for their justification. And that article is a clear example of your paper’s irresponsibility and unethical pandering to the hatemongers (and rationalizers) of the world.

DR. ERNEST H. SMITH

Chairman

KALEM AQUIL

Corresponding Secretary

Compton Citizen’s Power Action Committee

EDITOR’S NOTE: Richard P. Mesa, one of the other candidates identified in the story as a front-runner for the Compton job, is African-American and Latino, with one parent of each ethnicity.