Students Talk About What Causes Violence

In the wake of a recent tragedy at Harbor City’s Narbonne High School, where a student was beaten to death, about 260 students from nine San Fernando Valley-area high schools met Tuesday to discuss what causes violence on school campuses and in society at large--and how to stop it.

The summit was not prompted by the death at Narbonne, where a 17-year-old student was pummeled repeatedly by six others as his classmates stood by in horror, but the event served as a dominant theme in student conversations.

In a panel discussion, Debra Leidner, a school district administrator, posed a series of ethical questions to the students gathered in an auditorium at Shepherd of the Hills Church in Porter Ranch.

“A young man was beaten to death . . . while others did nothing to intervene. They simply watched,� she said. “How can we develop a sense of social consciousness among students and a willingness to get involved where this sort of thing could not happen again?�

The students responded with some indignation that it was easy to explain why no one jumped in to protect the victim at Narbonne.

“A lot of people are just scared by what might happen to them,� said one student. “We need to address that fear before we do anything else.�

Another placed the blame on school officials. “Where was the security at Narbonne High?� he asked. Many students applauded in agreement.

A majority of the students at the summit are already working to snuff out violence before it starts on their campuses through peer conflict intervention programs set up in their schools. These endeavors work to prevent fights from occurring by pulling potential adversaries into a room where they can talk out their differences.

It was the third annual summit for the conflict intervention programs, which include former gang members, athletes and honor students. Schools participating were Cleveland, Chatsworth, El Camino, Palisades, University, Polytechnic, Grant, Granada Hills and Canoga Park.

During the panel discussion and in study groups on such topics as racism, affirmative action and the influence of music on young people, the students addressed the importance of communication among schoolmates and between students and administrators.

Marsha Fowles, a senior at Granada Hills High School, brought up the importance of communication in response to Leidner’s question about the Narbonne beating.

“Students don’t feel that they can talk to administrators because they’re intimidated by them,� she said. “You need to come back down to our level so we can better communicate. Then you would be able to know what’s going on.�