Dorsey Game Quiet Amid Tight Security

Amid heavy security, but with no reports of violence, Dorsey High School on Friday night played its first home football game since being thrust into the national spotlight as a symbol of urban gang violence.

Several dozen uniformed city and school district police officers searched spectators as they entered, and patrolled in and around Jackie Robinson Stadium in Southwest Los Angeles during a 21-6 victory over suburban Westchester High.

Authorities took the unusual precautions to help rebuild Dorsey’s image, which supporters said was unfairly smeared earlier this month when rival Banning High School refused to play at Dorsey’s stadium because of gang shootings in the area.

The crowd of several hundred was lighter than expected, officials said. But enthusiastic Dorsey supporters sought to brush off the outcry over safety as they cheered their top-seeded team in its first-round playoff game. Many blamed Banning High and the news media, which was out in force for Friday’s game, for blowing the danger and controversy out of proportion.

“The media is just dragging this all out,” said senior Kisna Thompson, who was selling Dorsey sweat shirts.

“This is a safe place and I’m glad you all are here to see how safe it is,” said Dorsey booster Tanya Dawson, decked out in the school’s colors of green and white.

A contingent of 23 LAPD officers policed streets and parking lots around the Rodeo Road stadium, while 15 Los Angeles Unified School District officers patrolled inside the 2,500-seat facility down the street from Dorsey High.

LAPD Lt. Alan Kerstein, one of the officers in charge of security, said the show of force was designed to make the game “the safest place in this part of the city” and “let the people know that they can come to Jackie Robinson Stadium.”

Despite the high-profile security, only a small contingent of about 100 Westchester High supporters showed up. Westchester High Principal Eileen Banta acknowledged that the turnout was less than expected, but said there were no indications from students or parents that they were fearful of violence. “Not even one call,” she said. “We’re not afraid of playing here at all.”

Camille Ellison, Westchester High’s student body president, said some students “might jokingly kid (that they) don’t want to go to Dorsey . . . (but) none of my friends were afraid to come over here.”

The stunning decision by powerhouse Banning High to forfeit a Nov. 1 game rather than play at Dorsey High struck a nerve. Banning parents had demanded the forfeiture after two gang-related shootings last month at Dorsey--including one at a football game that left two students wounded and sent spectators and players scurrying for cover.

Banning stuck to its controversial decision despite denouncements from angry city and school district officials, and an offer from Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates to deploy hundreds of officers at the Dorsey-Banning game.

Last week, Banning was placed on probation by a California Interscholastic Federation committee because of the refusal to play.