Thread: Protests Prompt Oceanside Administrators To Close Schools

Protests Prompt Oceanside Administrators To Close Schools
http://www.kfmb.com/stories/story.44590.html
Last Updated:
03-30-06 at 7:07AM

Oceanside middle school and high school administrators Wednesday announced the closure of the schools for the rest of the week in light of student protests of a controversial immigration bill.

Hundreds of students met at Chicano Park in Logan Heights Wednesday morning for the third straight day.

According to reports, the students were from San Diego High, Hoover High, Memorial Jr. High, and other schools.

There were no arrests made Wednesday at Chicano Park, authorities said.

About 200 protesters from Mar Vista High School in Imperial Beach also decided to leave their campus Wednesday.

According to administrators from Southwest High School, they became concerned when they heard the Mar Vista students were coming by Southwest to get more students to join them.

They contacted the sheriff's department, and deputies detained most of the Mar Vista students, sending them back to their school by bus.

Now this is good policy.

The little morons decide to ditch school for three days, so to punish them the administrators decide to close the schools for the rest of the week.

Any one else find it more than a little odd how little coverage this is recieving in the NATIONAL PRESS?

FOX News can have a breaking news story for a CAR CHASE, but let students riot, let school administrators close their schools and it gets NO COVERAGE.

Face it, they are a part of shaping the debate now taking place in Washingonton, DC and they are NOT HELPING OUR CAUSE.

Pinto Bean

Any one else find it more than a little odd how little coverage this is recieving in the NATIONAL PRESS?

I don't, because it's clear to me whose side the media is on.

More invaders, more viewers. More viewers, more ad revenue.

It's that simple.

So, they just set them loose on the streets today and tomorrow rather than requiring them to get an education. We'll see what happens. Keep you posted

http://nctimes.com/articles/2006/03/..._423_29_06.txt

Oceanside closes middle, high schools today, Friday

By: PAUL SISSON - Staff Writer

OCEANSIDE ---- Fearing escalating violence in the wake of student demonstrations over proposed illegal immigration reforms, the Oceanside Unified School District announced late Wednesday that it has canceled all high school and middle school classes today and Friday.
In a written statement released just before 6 p.m., Oceanside Superintendent Ken Noonan said: "Student safety is my primary concern. Some of our students have participated in walkouts and demonstrations surrounding immigration laws currently being considered.

"We have received information that violence and racial tension could escalate throughout the community during the remainder of the week, and at this time I feel it is prudent to close our middle and high schools."


Noonan said elementary schools will remain open.

The announcement came just hours after students and police clashed at Oceanside High School.

Police officers dressed in riot gear fired pepper spray pellets into the ground to stop about 200 Oceanside High School students from leaving campus Wednesday for a second straight day of protests over proposed illegal immigration reforms.

About 11:50 a.m., as the lunch hour began, the students, most of them Latino, surged forward to the school's west entrance on Horne Street, but found a green metal gate barring their path to the sidewalk. On the other side of the gate stood police officers, watching the crowd through clear plastic face shields, paintball guns loaded with pepper spray ammunition at the ready.

Amid a loud backdrop of school officials using bullhorns to urge everyone to return to class, students began to throw bottles of water, milk cartons and other materials at the line of police on Horne Street. Several students jumped onto the gate and began rocking it back and forth.

Suddenly, a "pop pop pop" caused the students to step back as police fired a volley of pepper spray pellets at the ground near the students.

"Back away from the fence or you are going to get sprayed," warned a school official through a bullhorn.

Students jumped back, though some in the crowd continued to throw water bottles and other trash at the police. The students eventually turned around and ran across campus toward the high school's southern entrance on Center Street in Oceanside's Crown Heights neighborhood, only to run into more officers.

Seventy-five to 80 Oceanside police officers, backed up by San Diego County Sheriffs Department deputies and about 30 California Highway Patrol officers, had encircled the entire school and blocked all of the exits. By about 12:15 p.m., police had closed eastbound Mission Avenue. A little while later, the westbound lanes were shut down as well. Police also closed several on-ramps to Interstate 5 as a police helicopter circled overhead.

Eventually, after realizing there was no way out, students returned to class where they remained in locked classrooms until they were sent home ---- one class at a time ---- starting shortly after 2 p.m.

Sgt. Leonard Mata of the Oceanside Police Department said police arrested three Oceanside High students on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly throwing chunks of concrete at officers during the incident.

Mata was unsure exactly where on campus the concrete was thrown.

Oceanside council reacts to protests


Oceanside Mayor Jim Wood said Wednesday that he witnessed Tuesday's student march which brought about 300 students from both Oceanside and El Camino high schools to the Oceanside Civic Center.

"I'm not happy any time we have students leave school grounds, for both safety and liability issues," Wood said, adding that the aggressive actions of some of the students forced the city to step up its enforcement for the rest of the week.

He said the rowdiness of many students took away from any message they're trying to send by marching and that he hopes students calm down.

"They've had their moment and shouldn't push the issue," he said. "Their actions haven't helped their cause."

Council members took different stances on Wednesday's incident at Oceanside High.

Councilwoman Esther Sanchez said the police shouldn't have used pepper spray to force the students to stay on campus, and she blamed the school district for putting police in that position.

If district and school officials had allowed students to leave the campus to protest, as they did Tuesday, or even if the school had let the students host a large assembly on the football field at lunchtime, then Wednesday's confrontation would not have happened, she said.

"While I do believe that the kids need to understand the situation and the consequences of not attending school, I disagree with the use of any force, including the use of pepper spray on 16-year-olds," she said.

Councilman Rocky Chavez had a different take.

"I think the Oceanside Police Department is doing a stellar job," he said. "I think parents need to take some responsibility for the actions of their children."

Chavez, who also leads the School of Business and Technology charter school, said he thinks the use of pepper spray on the students was appropriate given the circumstances. He said it's his understanding that students were trying to break down the school's western gate when the pepper spray forced them back.

"I think it was very responsible of (the police) to use the pepper spray in that manner," he said.

While saying he didn't dispute the students' rights to protest, Councilman Jack Feller said the police had no choice when they fired pepper spray pellets into the ground to stop the students.

"When people feel threatened by the mood (of the protest), then the police need to take appropriate action," Feller said. "And, as far as I am concerned, the police did as good a job as they could have done, trying to keep the peace (and) at the same time having these kind of renegade students running down the street."

Elsewhere in the Oceanside district, about 100 students at Jefferson and Martin Luther King Jr. middle schools left campus Wednesday morning to protest, but were stopped in their tracks by police officers who herded them onto school buses and drove them back to campus, according to Oceanside Unified spokeswoman Laura Chalkley. Those students received detentions for truancy, she said.

El Camino High School officials said there were no protests or disruptions on campus Wednesday.

Staff writers Louise Esola, Barbara Henry, Jo Moreland, Chris Tribbey and Yvette Urrea contributed to this story. Contact staff writer Paul Sisson at (760) 901-4087 or psisson@nctimes.com.

Comments On This Story

Note: Comments reflect the views of readers and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff.
Oceanside Mother wrote on March 29, 2006 11:32 PM:"I have children that attend Oceanside elementary and junior high schools. I find it so sad that activity at middle school had my child say that she doesn't want to go to school tomorrow because there was a lot of talk regarding bringing guns to school so they can protest. She was afraid for her life. These protests have obviously taken a very sad turn. The second violence entered the equation it stopped being about protesting the proposed immigration laws. They are now infringing on the rights of all American citizens and our children's right to an education and feeling safe while receiving such. "

Mike wrote on March 30, 2006 12:56 AM:"I think this is ridiculous. The inmates are running the asylum. Where will these kids go tomorrow, to the demonstration of course since there is no school. Ten thousand kids running the streets of Oceanside. If one third demonstrate we have got problems. The entire city could be in lock down. I cant wait to head down Mission in the morning. "

What Can We Do? wrote on March 30, 2006 4:56 AM:"What can we do to voice our disappointment with the behavior of these so-called, "demonstrations?" On June 6, when we go to the polls to vote, we can cast a resounding NO vote on Prop. F. Tell these illegal aliens in no uncertain terms that we are no longer willing to pay for their visits to our hospital's emergency room. Vote No on F!"

HowSad... wrote on March 30, 2006 5:56 AM:"That the schools are giving in to these protests. The children/youth/teens need to suffer the consequences for walking out of class or off of campus. INSTEAD, some GENIUS decides to give them two days off?! GOOD DECISION!!! Now you turn them out to the city to take care of?! How sad that the school officials couldn't reign this in... and we leave our kids with these people every day ?????"

teacher & oceanside resdient wrote on March 30, 2006 6:40 AM:"Esther Sanchez needs to get a clue. Let them leave and enable the violence and bad behavior? And if of those kids should get hurt, guess who gets slapped with a lawsuit for not protecting its students - the school district. Rocky Chavez is the sensible one here and I agree that Oceanside police are doing a stellar job protecting its citizens. And I agree with Oceanside Mother - it's not about the proposed laws when violence enters...it's just about, well, more violence, defiance, truancy...perhaps the kids should be in class learning about a man named Ghandi. "

Oceanside Activist wrote on March 30, 2006 6:43 AM:"The City Council needs to institute and emergency ordinance directing the Police Department to turn over every suspect who is determined to be an illegal alien over to Immigration for deportation. The city of Costa Mesa has a similar ordinance to use as a pattern, I think. This will put an immediate end to all school disruption."

Escondido Mother wrote on March 30, 2006 6:43 AM:"Oceanside Mother makes the point very well that this issue has become more about the voilent outbreaks than about imigration policies. The angry and violent Mexican population has existed here putting fear in the hearts of our children since I was a child in the schools here in the 70's and 80's. The only thing that has changed is that American Citizens are trying to stand up against them and the illegal underground population that does not want to become American and does not want to follow our laws. Where will it end? "

Pedro wrote on March 30, 2006 6:46 AM:"What can we do? Vote No on Prop. F! That is a wonderful idea! We provide free healthcare to illegal aliens, and the thanks we get- closing down our school system? If they despise our generousity and spurn our kindness, now is the time to turn off our compassion."

Oceanside resident wrote on March 30, 2006 6:47 AM:"It seems to be an overreaction and a waste of money and manpower to call in the police. If the students miss a day of school, then the parents should be notified. This was a missed opportunity to turn the headlines into a civics lesson for these students. Let the students protest on campus or after school. These kids are our future govenment leaders, we should not be stiffling their growth."

Oceanside Mother wrote on March 30, 2006 7:31 AM:"This is really upsetting. I have a child in elementary in the Oceanside School District and the middle school children went to his school and were starting to parade around with their Mexican flags. I am Mexican and don’t appreciate all the chaos that these kids are bringing to our community and an embarrassment to our race, most of these CHILDREN don’t even know what this whole thing its about. The truancy officer needs to slap all the parents with children that walked out with fines and then see who will be walking out."

Larissa wrote on March 30, 2006 7:32 AM:"We recently moved to Oceanside and I am embarrassed to say that I live here. This city is so disorganized and backwards. How does a group of students control the School Boards, Mayor, City Council & anyone else who had the authority to stop this fiasco at our schools? Superintendant Noonan should be fired!"

Anna-Mexican American wrote on March 30, 2006 7:39 AM:"To the protesters... If you want to be heard please hold up the flag to the country that you want to be allowed to live in. Please be professional, CHOOSE YOUR WORDS WISELY, make your parents proud if they happen to see you in the paper or the television. Remember our parents came here to give us opportunity for an education and for a brighter future. Stand up for what you believe in but do it with integrity. Choose your actions that would make your children proud someday. Remember your are the future!"

PC wrote on March 30, 2006 7:46 AM:"I agree with Mike, the inmates are running the asylum! The violence is uncontrolable. These protesters are becoming more violent and out of control everyday.Shutting school down is going to make it easier for ALL of the students to be out causing more crime and violence."

Hector wrote on March 30, 2006 8:07 AM:"Why should we pay $600 million in new property taxes just to build a state of the art Emergency Room that illegals will use for free? Vote No on Prop. F!"

Ron wrote on March 30, 2006 8:13 AM:"This is letting the patients run the asylum. Pretty obvious they can't control it. Why keep them open?"

While I do believe that the kids need to understand the situation and the consequences of not attending school, I disagree with the use of any force, including the use of pepper spray on 16-year-olds," she said.

What consequences would those be? This idiot Councilwoman just said you can't use force to make them obey.

all that protesting and violence does nothing to help their cause whatsoever, and does SO MUCH to help our cause.

I say, let them protest all they want -- just shows how irrational they are.