Grocer Kills Teen

These are some of my feelings about a former high school student of mine, Brenda Hughes, who was killed Nov. 21, by a market owner. The owner shot into a car filled with five teenagers apparently thinking they had stolen beer from his store.

Only in America:

* Would teenagers be tempted to steal beer from a market. In Third World countries thieves might try to steal eggs or milk because they are hungry.

* Would the easy availability of guns allow a store owner to keep a .45-caliber pistol in his store. In most countries private ownership of guns is banned or firearms are very difficult to obtain.

* Would a teenager be skipping class and “hanging out” at a supermarket in a car. In most countries students wear uniforms and education is taken very seriously.

* Would a store owner be so upset about the supposed theft of beer that he would fire randomly into a car filled with teenagers. In most countries the police would be called.

CLIFFORD HOOE

Teacher, LAUSD

* Re “A Student, a Shopkeeper, and a Moment of Tragedy,” Nov. 23: The shooting of a youth of color by a harried Korean storeowner Jo Won Kim is not an unprecedented story. After the L.A. uprising, one might think that things really would have changed. But the real issues are not being addressed. The problems in these environments were not created by Koreans and African Americans and Latinos in isolation. We should be looking at the underlying causes of vying for such limited resources, at what really causes the economic reality that people are living in.

What forces many (college-educated) immigrants to make a living selling liquor in high-crime areas? And which same forces create the crime and drug-ridden environments that our youth must live in?

It’s not a “moment” but an ongoing tragedy.

JANE BAHK

Los Angeles

* Re “Shops Under Siege,” Nov. 27: In my home country of Belize small “mom and pop” stores aren’t designed as open-spaced markets for customers to shop freely in. Customers have to walk into a lobby in which the merchandise is behind bars or bullet-proof glass. The owner retrieves the merchandise for customers and gives it to them only after they pay. This might cause some inconveniences, but it might prevent a disgruntled owner shooting a shoplifter.

DARREN HAYLOCK