ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : The Art of Getting Along

The days when schools like Fullerton Union High could restrict themselves to reading, writing and arithmetic are long gone. Now they must also try to keep the peace among students from different ethnic or racial backgrounds. If they can achieve some actual harmony, so much the better.

Teachers, administrators and students at Fullerton Union High School deserve credit for instituting special cultural diversity programs. Principal Ed Shaw said the goal is to teach students to accept the differences between themselves and others and to celebrate similarities. That is a good philosophy.

The catalyst for the group discussions, seminars and retreats was the September, 1992, fatal shooting of a Latino student, Angel Gonzalez, by Asian youths. The attack took place about a block off campus, hours after a quarrel between Gonzalez and a group of young Asians, one of whom police said was a Fullerton Union High sophomore.

For several years before the shooting, the ethnic makeup of the school’s student population had been changing. Once most of the students were Anglo. Now Latinos account for nearly half, with Asians at 10%. After the shooting, some Asian students said they were worried Latinos would retaliate against them. A few reported being the target of ethnic slurs. But some Latinos reached out to calm those fears and administrators launched a multicultural task force of a dozen students assigned to promote harmony. It was a good idea, but it was not enough.

So last year administrators formed a larger group, which recently staged an assembly on ethnic diversity. Many students have gone to UC Irvine for more lessons on the subject. The Orange County Human Relations Commission periodically brings groups of students together to describe their lives, including instances of discrimination. The school newspaper publishes a page of news in Spanish, and lunchtime music features Latino rhythms as well as rock.

The principal said more remains to be done. But the school was wise to launch the programs and to seek outside resources. In today’s diverse society, the art of getting along must be learned as soon as possible.