Letters to the Editor: The Pasadena principal angry at ‘nosy ... white neighbors’ had a point

To the editor: I am a resident of Pasadena’s San Rafael neighborhood and a parent of three children. The incident at San Rafael Elementary — where the police were called on a school janitor, prompting the principal to lash out at the campus’ mostly white neighbors — was unfortunate but preventable.

Our campus is a highly sought-after Spanish dual-language immersion school with a diverse student body and staff, and we have fought to keep our school in this community despite opposition to our presence.

Although San Rafael Elementary is in a “predominantly white and affluent area,” as you write, the student body is 85% children of color, and 75% Latino. We celebrate and protect our staff like the family that they are.

Principal Rudy Ramirez is highly attuned to the greater probability of being shot while being a person of color, even if unarmed. His experiences (like mine as a young Latino) were at a time of strained police-community relations. His angry words toward the neighbors do not reflect the character of the man we know and support, but his situation was one most people have never been in.

With the recent uproar over the police failures in Uvalde, Texas, misreporting staff as intruders unnecessarily places people at risk. Communication is key, and Pasadena as a whole can do better.

Franklin Acevedo, Pasadena

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To the editor: Some things never change, it seems.

More than 20 years ago, I was the principal at Selma Avenue Elementary in Hollywood. I was working late, as I frequently did, when two police officers came into my office accompanied by the night custodian, a Black man.

“Do you know this man?” I was asked. I identified him as our night custodian. “Dressed like this?” the officers asked, referring to his less than formal attire. I replied, “He cleans toilets, how should he dress?”

Apparently, the officers had detained him for some time in the school parking lot across the street where he had gone to lock the gates, refusing to believe that he was an employee despite his district ID and the school keys on his belt. Knowing I was still in my office, he finally convinced them to bring him to me. I blatantly accused the police of racism, which they vehemently denied.

I sympathize with the Pasadena principal. I hadn’t responded with foul language, but I was angry at the situation. Perhaps the police have something to answer for as well.

Doris Dent, Northridge