A MISSTATEMENT CLEARED

Dear Editor,

I would like to thank you for the excellent article on the college’s effort to resolve its parking problem that appeared on Oct. 11, 2002.

In my enthusiasm to describe the efforts of the college to add more parking I made a misstatement that has caused some alarm and concernt to our neighbors in the apartment complex north of the college.
Your article reported me as saying, “the college is negotiating to buy the property where an apartment building stands just north of campus on Verdugo Road. An offer has been made, but the owner has yet to reply.”

The reality is that the college has not yet made an offer, nor are we in negotiations with the owner.
The college has completed an appraisal of the property and has sent the owner a Letter of Intent.
This letter asks the owner to contact us if he is interested in selling. As we have heard nothing from the owner, we are not able to negotiate.

I apologize for the misunderstanding.

– Lawrence R. Serot,
Vice President of Adminsitrative Services

RESPONSES TO A PREVIOUS OPINION PIECE

Dear Editor,

As someone who has devoted much of her writing career to battling prejudice of all kinds, I was particularly interested in your editorial on hate crimes by Beverley Irwin.

I agree that it is important that we don’t use the hate crime statutes indiscriminantly. If we do, they will become instruments of the very hate they were designed to combat.

As to being part of a minority group, most of us are bonafide members of one or another.

If we pause a moment to think how it felt when bigotry was turned upon us because of our minority status, we may become more accepting of others’ differences. That is not a bad thing at all.
Well done staff writer Irwin.

– Carolyn Howard Johnson
Author,
GCC Returning Student

Dear Editor,

I am in my first semester here at GCC and have become a regular reader of your paper, which I look forward to every two weeks.

However, I was kind of shocked and upset by Beverley Irwin’s editorial on hate crimes.

Being a gay male, and being victim of a hate crime I was astonished at a few of her remarks.

She argues in two paragraphs that ALL crimes are in a way hate crimes. I would agree, you must carry some hate with you to commit any major crime.

Then she goes on to point out obvious facts like most people in West Hollywood are gay, (actually the majority of West Hollywood’s residents are Russian) and that most people in Glendale are Armenian.

Well, after her stereotyping finished, she then claims that there was NO evidence that these crimes were motivated by anything more than robbery!

The most amusing part of the editorial was when she noted why she was motivated to write the article…and I quote: “I think it is because it annoys me when squeaky wheels of so called minority groups get on a bandwagon about causes they often know little about,” Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson do the same, “and thereby perpetuate the segregation of society – in order to maintain a position for themselves.”

Now when I say amused, it was due to the total immature, prejudiced and ridiculous comments I have heard about the gay community. We segregate ourselves from society to maintain a position?

Even better was her naive and childish closing, stating that she could immediately name three to four “minority” groups that she belongs to whether she wanted to or not, just by virtue…one, being female, which I had no idea was a minority, two, an alien, which trust me, is not a minority (unless she’s an illegal alien) … three, a student, again I had no idea students were a minority group and lastly, unemployed, and TRUST me that is definitely not a minority.

But not to worry, as Ms. Irwin prefers to think of herself as a part of a wider society, rather than segregate herself into one of those cliques.

Well good luck to you Ms. Irwin, when you decide whether your in a minority group or part of a wider society, maybe your editorials will provide a little bit more insight and compassion.

– Paul Erangey
Student

Dear Mr. Erangey,

– Beverley Irwin