Opposition to Prop. 227
I am writing in response to your June 6 report on the Belmont High School students who ditched school to protest the passage of Prop. 227. How many of these students could write an essay in English about why they opposed this initiative?
EDWARD FORDE
Fallbrook
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* As a former student activist who was arrested several times for taking actions in line with his beliefs, a former teacher in LAUSD and an opponent of Prop. 227, I resent the insinuation that the courageous students at Belmont High School who took to the streets to protest the Unz initiative did so because they were “excited by the chance to ditch class.” Believe me, I know what guts it takes to face up to the possibility of maltreatment by the police, and it is no laughing matter. Your reporters owe the Belmont students an apology.
S. JOHN DANIELS
Los Angeles
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* Can George Skelton (Capitol Journal, June 4) be so gullible that he believes that “people took lawmaking into their own hands”? It is clear that they were manipulated by one of the oldest fears to plague the Republic: rejection of those who do not speak English. Your June 4 editorial castigates the LAUSD for dragging its feet in implementing 227 and attempts to pillory teachers for future acts of civil disobedience. Immoral laws such as Prop. 227 should be opposed at every possible turn. Where would we be if the Jim Crow laws had not been opposed by African Americans and others?
James Pinkerton’s reasoning is clouded by his conservative viewpoint (Commentary, June 4). Where is the evidence that bilingualism disrupts Americanization? Has he been to Miami lately? Does he think that the children of Cuban emigres will ever stop being Americans? I have always believed that the Constitution and the principles of the Founding Fathers are what defines this country, not its language. Furthermore, bilingual education is, and always has been, about teaching English.
J. MANUEL URRUTIA
Van Nuys
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* This year I have a class of 31 children, fifth- and sixth-graders. Of those 31, 20 speak a language other than English at home, representing six different languages. Only five of these children have not moved from Limited English Proficient to being classified as Fluent English Proficient. Yet in all these school years only the two Spanish-speaking boys (neither of whom is literate in English) ever had any bilingual classes. The others, Chinese, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Filipino, Korean and Spanish speakers, have only had Saturday classes to become literate in the language their parents speak. I use teaching strategies that allow for individual differences, but I do speak only English and I do expect excellence in my class. I feel that the children perform at the level I expect.
The voters approved dismantling bilingual. If my classroom is any indication of what the future holds with no bilingual, we will see growth in education at last.
MARSHA MULRONEY
Placentia
