Rebuke of Simpson Jury Sparks Uproar : Bias: Laguna Niguel councilman’s letter brings race issue to surface, reopens wounds of two hate crime victims.

The first time, vandals pelted the house with eggs. The second time, it was strewn with toilet paper.

Then, in July, Reginald Burgess, who is African American, and his fiancee, Carol Folk, who is white, found a racial slur drawn on their garage in chocolate syrup. There was a white cross made of toilet paper on the gate. Three teen-agers have been arrested and charged in the crime and await trial.

So, when a city councilman recently castigated the jury that acquitted O.J. Simpson of double murder--using official city stationery and language many found racist--it ripped open old emotional wounds for Folk and Burgess.

And suddenly, like many cities across the country, Laguna Niguel found itself wrestling with issues of race. It appears the uproar over the letter is not going to go away soon.

Several days after the City Council voted unanimously to condemn the letter by Councilman Eddie Rose, City Hall is being flooded with phone calls and letters. So far, 218 calls have come in, 162 defending Rose and 56 against him. Mail correspondence, though heavy, hasn’t been counted.

And while many residents, in informal conversations around town, say they aren’t aware of the controversy and don’t even know who Eddie Rose is, the issue has still stirred passions and prompted community soul-searching.

Residents of many different ethnic backgrounds and religions are calling for public discussions of race relations. Some, taking a political approach, have started a recall campaign to oust Rose from office. Others are optimistic, saying the episode has started a healthy dialogue.

But for Burgess and Folk, this all somehow feels uncomfortably familiar.

“It’s something we deal with on an almost daily basis,” said Folk, who plans to move by year’s end, in part because she fears for the safety of her family, which includes Burgess’ young sons. “The kids come home from school and talk about being called the ‘N-word’ again.”

City officials say they are trying to figure out how to deal with the painful issue.

“I know I’m going to do everything I can to speak out as mayor and a resident,” said Mayor Mark Goodman, who called a special council meeting Monday night at which Rose’s letter was formally denounced before an audience of at least 150 people.

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The mayor intends to step up his public speaking engagements to address the race issue around the city and wants to organize community round-table discussions similar to the Day of Dialogue held in Los Angeles after the Simpson verdicts.

But Goodman, like many others, also believes that racism is not a widespread problem in Laguna Niguel. The city of about 54,000 people is 71% white and has fewer than 700 African American residents, according to data from the city and the 1990 U.S. Census. The rest of the city’s residents are Latino and Asian American.

Racial incidents, while they are troubling and demand action, are few, Goodman said.

“Most of the people who came to the night meeting were saying, ‘We don’t agree with this letter,’ ” said Goodman, who believes the city’s image has been hurt by the incident. “That’s how the vast majority of people in this city feel.”

Although three-fourths of phone calls to City Hall support Rose, most of the calls are from outside Laguna Niguel. Calls from city residents indicate a slim majority against the councilman.

Rusty Kennedy, head of the Orange County Human Relations Commission, which tracks race-related crimes and incidents, said the city is no better or worse than most areas in the county.

“I think all of the South County area is struggling with race issues; they’re going through development stages, growing pains,” Kennedy said. “South County has been beleaguered, but I don’t think it’s fair to say the [Rose] letter has left the community divided.”

He believes that the council’s response to the letter has provided “a unifying position.”

Rose, who was presented with a recall petition at Monday’s meeting, has apologized for hurting anyone’s feeling with the letter that refers to Simpson’s “jive talking” defense attorney and accuses the largely black jury of ignoring the evidence to set a “brother” free.

But Rose insists that he is wrongly being accused of racism, and contends the controversy is being promoted by his political enemy, the mayor.

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The topic is buzzing in the coffeehouses and shopping centers of Laguna Niguel.

Sitting with her accountant at Starbucks Coffee, Cheryl Stahl said she was pleased to see a local official vent his frustration over the Simpson verdict.

“People are outraged” over the Simpson results, said Stahl, a local dentist. “I think it’s totally justifiable to have city officials speaking out.”

But others in Starbucks disagreed. And Pam Lathan of Laguna Niguel, who helped form African American Parents and Concerned Citizens of South Orange County, said many black residents are concerned that the lack of minorities in the area often makes racial issues invisible to the community at large.

“It’s like anything else, you don’t know it’s happening until it happens to you,” Lathan said. “You can look through the world with rose-colored lenses if you like. But just don’t deny me a degree of compassion. Open up your ears and listen to me.”

Lathan considered the council’s condemnation of Rose’s letter a step in the right direction.

“The system worked the way it was supposed to,” she said. “We’re hoping it’s a beginning.”