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Our society is based on violence. Looking back on U.S. history, it is plain to see that our society was built on a racist, sexist, and violent foundation. Out in Santee and pretty much every middle-class bedroom community, there is an attitude that they are safe. So when it hits home, when their child is lying in a hospital bed, or in a coffin, that is when there is this outrage. No one knows what happened – they were such good kids…. 

And in the midst of all of this, when for a moment the spotlight is being taken off of urban youth the story is spun around. All of a sudden there is a “violence problem” at Berkeley High. In order to please voters, (note: majority white) - the mayor, superintendent, and school board members jump at this problem of violence. Students report that possibly one-third of BHS students are involved in fighting. That is 1,200 students out of 3,600 students attending BHS. 

Is this really an accurate estimate? How many students gave this statistic, and secondly, what student knows all 3,599 of their counterparts at BHS? This “problem of violence” that is being attacked is going to affect students of color and not even City Councilmember Linda Maio denies this when she says: “We don’t want t be in a position where we hear shouts from the community that this is racist.” 

In her comment alone, Maio reveals the probability that the solution to the “problem of violence” is going to affect students of color. Do they need ideas on how not to be racist? From what I read, they seem to be getting very biased opinions from students and parents. Quick to spend money on a truancy program or other means to reduce “school violence” at BHS. 

Here are a couple of better ideas: 

Give students an after-school program, supervising a basketball court after school, add classes of student interest to keep kids in school, improve the curriculum and relate it to students’ lives, hire more qualified teachers. 

There seems to be this pattern of running around the underlying issues, not getting to the root causes of the “violence problem.” 

Problems? The problem is society, and although we cannot erase history we can cultivate ideas and input from students to enforce positive programs. Can we try a new concept for once, counter the negative with the positive and gain a positive outcome? 

There is much talk of “the problem” but the administrators want “to put their foot down” and stomp out violence and what a coincidence! – California passed Prop. 21 and now “liberal” Berkeley has a problem on their hands and the mayor and city council and superintendent turn to the same racist, ageist approach of Proposition 21. 

Sade Bonilla is a ninth grader at Berkeley High School.