Racial factor weighed
in brawls at Radford

The NAACP will look into what is
behind recent fights that led to
a school lock-down

The local NAACP chapter is investigating recent fights on or near Radford High School at the request of parents, while school officials and some students say the brawls were not racially motivated.

Alphonso Braggs, president of the Honolulu-Hawaii National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, called the incidents "frightening and utterly embarrassing for the people of Hawaii."

A heavy police presence on the campus might have contributed to the relative calm yesterday in the wake of Monday's scuffles, which prompted a school lock-down.

The unrest stemmed from a brawl Saturday night after a basketball game at the school, Vice Principal Bob Frey said.

Frey denied accusations by parents of military dependents who said their children were targeted by locals or that race was an issue, and said the alleged aggressor group is a mix of locals and military dependents.

The initial disagreement Saturday was between two male students, which a parent and a football team leader broke up, he said. After the two students parted ways, they met up with their friends.

One of the two and his school friends living on Aliamanu Military Reservation were walking home, and were cut off by the other student and his friends in their cars.

Frey, who was on campus, ran to the scene of the melee at Salt Lake Boulevard and Bougainville Drive, but by that time it was over.

Two students went to the hospital, one with a black eye, he said. Mothers told him later that another student had been bleeding.

The school administration sent out a letter with students yesterday informing parents what had happened, and that the Department of Public Safety and the Army, which operates Aliamanu Military Reservation, is investigating, Frey said.

"When we're able to identify the perpetrators, they will face consequences," the letter said.

"Any parent who feels their child's safety is compromised has the right to keep the child at home for two or three days," he said.

Several parents talked to school administrators yesterday and decided to send their children to classes. But African-American parents whose children were attacked told school officials they feared their kids might be attacked again, he said.

Two special-duty officers, several uniformed and plainclothes officers, solo bike officers, and military personnel were posted yesterday on campus during and after school.

Parent Latoya Polee, an African-American, said school authorities did not handle the situation well. "Repercussions should have happened to the students," she said. "What is that saying?"

Board of Education Chairman Breene Harimoto said the school administration is investigating the situation, and some students have already been suspended.

"So far, there is no evidence to indicate it was racially motivated," Harimoto said. "If we find that it was, we will take swift action."

Rick English, a ninth-grade African-American student, said he was "kind of" afraid after hearing about the incidents, but that the police presence was reassuring.

"My mom was wondering what was going on," he said. "She was asking, 'Is it that dangerous?' "

Alanie Vale, a 10th-grade Puerto Rican student, said she has friends on both sides, including some who got hurt.

"My mom's really scared for me to go to school," she said.

But she's not fearful because "it started off with just two people."

Vale believes racial tensions on campus will always exist, with an "I'm better than you" attitude.

Braggs said the NAACP met with DOE officials in December to discuss other reports of alleged racial harassment, and that his office has received six such reports since the beginning of this year.

The Radford incident "is the culmination of a number of allegations of problems in our schools," he said.