School controversy becoming pink elephant-sized

Alicia Robinson

The color of cotton candy is at the center of an issue some think has

become a media circus.

Ensign Intermediate School Principal Edward Wong pulled six

students from a class photo last week for wearing pink in a way

school officials thought could signify a party crew, which they

considered a precursor to a gang.

Other students walked out of the photo in protest and hundreds

wore pink the next day to show their support. Since then, various TV

personalities have jumped into the fray, with radio and TV host Ryan

Seacrest airing the issue on the radio Tuesday and four local TV

stations showing up at the school Wednesday.

School officials are ready for the issue to die down, but the pink

crusade shows no sign of stopping, with several Southern California

chapters of a sorority among those heeding Seacrest’s call to wear

pink Friday.

By putting the focus on the color pink, the media missed the main

point of the issue, which was making sure students don’t wear colors

that signify party crews, school district spokeswoman Jane Garland

said.

“They’ve made it into a joke instead of the fact that we’re trying

to curtail gang activities, the exact job we’ve been given to do,”

Garland said. “To me, it has hit a point of ridiculousness and I

think we should move on and talk about the real problems of educating

our children.”

Seacrest’s attention was drawn to the issue after the Orange

County Register ran a story including a student’s comment that the

“American Idol” host likes pink, said Martin Wagmaister, a producer

for the KIIS-FM (102.7) radio show “On Air with Ryan Seacrest.”

“We took that and just ran with it,” Wagmaister said.

Seacrest talked on the air about how it’s OK for anyone, male or

female, to wear pink, and the show has been getting calls from

supportive listeners all week, Wagmaister said.

“It’s crazy how it’s spread,” he said. “It spread so fast. We’re

just really surprised because we didn’t expect it to go as far as it

went.”

Various chapters of the Sigma Lambda Gamma sorority, including the

one at UC Irvine, planned to wear pink Friday, said Irvine chapter

President Beatriz Banuelos. Pink is one of the sorority’s official

colors.

“The fact that it said ‘think pink,’ it was a chance for us not

only to support a cause but for us to reaffirm what our color means

to us,” she said.

Wagmaister said Seacrest is aware that the school’s issue was with

possible party crew affiliation rather than just pink as a color.

“The whole issue started with Ensign Middle School and it

eventually ends there too, because we are supporting the students of

Ensign and we are supporting anyone else who’s ever had an issue with

wearing pink,” he said.

While the issue was a big deal to students at the time, it’s gone

way overboard since, said Julie, a parent of an Ensign student who

asked that her last name not be used.

The principal might have handled the situation better by letting

the students stay in the class photo and talking to them afterward

about what they were wearing, she said.

“I think we need to be fair toward Dr. Wong in that he’s just

looking out for the safety of these kids,” she said.

Garland said she hasn’t heard questions or complaints from

parents, but she has certainly heard from the media.

School officials aren’t saying the students pulled from the

picture are in a gang, but they have a responsibility to act if there

is even a possibility of gang-like activity, Garland said. This puts

the school in a tough position.

“If we become proactive, we’re questioned. If we don’t become

proactive, we’re questioned,” Garland said.

* ALICIA ROBINSON covers business, politics and the environment.

She may be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail at

alicia.robinson@latimes.com.