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TRIBUTE TO GENOCIDE VICTIMS IS PERSONAL FOR SOME CORONA-NORCO STUDENTS
By Michelle L. Klampe
Press-Enterprise, CA
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_N ews_Local_C_cflag02.43b19ce.html
May 2 2008
The Press-Enterprise
Amanda Thuch blinked away tears as she gazed at the field of small
white flags planted in front of old Corona City Hall on Thursday to
represent genocide victims in Cambodia.
The flags were just a few of the 3,400 flags planted by Corona-Norco
high school students in commemoration of Yom Hashoah, or Holocaust
Remembrance Day, marked worldwide today.
"Looking at all these flags is pretty emotional," said Thuch, a
16-year-old sophomore at Orange Grove High School. "I prayed for them."
Story continues below
Paul Alvarez / The Press-Enterprise Santiago High School senior
Aaron Carriedo places flags in front of the old Corona City Hall on
Thursday as part of the third annual Field of Flags display. Students
from Corona and Norco high schools planted more than 3,000 flags to
honor Holocaust and genocide victims.
The third annual Field of Flags display honors Holocaust victims as
well as the victims of genocides in Cambodia, Armenia, Iraq, Bosnia,
Rwanda and Darfur. Each small flag represents 5,000 lives lost.
The tribute is constructed by high school students involved in the
Corona-Norco district's Unity program, which helps students overcome
biases and understand social justice.
In previous years, the event was held at Santana Regional Park, but
it was moved this year to the lawn on Sixth Street so more members
of the community could visit the display.
"This is a chance for people to park their car and look," said Eliseo
Davalos, director of pupil services for Corona-Norco Unified School
District.
Student docents will be at the site today to talk to visitors. The
flags will remain through Sunday morning.
Story continues below
Among the genocides remembered in the Field of Flags display is the
1987-88 killing of thousands of Kurds in Iraq.
Brianna McCullough, a 17-year-old Centennial High School senior,
said she did not know anything about the Armenian genocide, in which
more than 1 million people were killed starting in 1915, until she
researched it for the project.
"I think all of these people that died should be recognized,"
she said. "The only way you can stop stuff like this is by talking
about it."
The Cambodian genocide, which left an estimated 2 million people
dead at the hands of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s, is more than just
an event in history for Thuch. Her parents were born in Cambodia,
and members of her family escaped the oppression, she said.
"My grandma was pregnant with my uncle and she walked for three days"
to escape, said Thuch, who wore a red T-shirt with an image of the
Cambodian temple Angkor Wat on the front. Her classmates sported
similar T-shirts on loan from Thuch's mother.
The personal connections of students Thuch and Rawel Chanloeung, 17,
who was born in Cambodia and whose parents lived through the genocide,
brought the project to life for Orange Grove students, said counselor
Lynda Bowie.
"It was exciting," she said, "but it was also disheartening."
Reach Michelle L. Klampe at 951-893-2114 or [email protected]
By Michelle L. Klampe
Press-Enterprise, CA
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_N ews_Local_C_cflag02.43b19ce.html
May 2 2008
The Press-Enterprise
Amanda Thuch blinked away tears as she gazed at the field of small
white flags planted in front of old Corona City Hall on Thursday to
represent genocide victims in Cambodia.
The flags were just a few of the 3,400 flags planted by Corona-Norco
high school students in commemoration of Yom Hashoah, or Holocaust
Remembrance Day, marked worldwide today.
"Looking at all these flags is pretty emotional," said Thuch, a
16-year-old sophomore at Orange Grove High School. "I prayed for them."
Story continues below
Paul Alvarez / The Press-Enterprise Santiago High School senior
Aaron Carriedo places flags in front of the old Corona City Hall on
Thursday as part of the third annual Field of Flags display. Students
from Corona and Norco high schools planted more than 3,000 flags to
honor Holocaust and genocide victims.
The third annual Field of Flags display honors Holocaust victims as
well as the victims of genocides in Cambodia, Armenia, Iraq, Bosnia,
Rwanda and Darfur. Each small flag represents 5,000 lives lost.
The tribute is constructed by high school students involved in the
Corona-Norco district's Unity program, which helps students overcome
biases and understand social justice.
In previous years, the event was held at Santana Regional Park, but
it was moved this year to the lawn on Sixth Street so more members
of the community could visit the display.
"This is a chance for people to park their car and look," said Eliseo
Davalos, director of pupil services for Corona-Norco Unified School
District.
Student docents will be at the site today to talk to visitors. The
flags will remain through Sunday morning.
Story continues below
Among the genocides remembered in the Field of Flags display is the
1987-88 killing of thousands of Kurds in Iraq.
Brianna McCullough, a 17-year-old Centennial High School senior,
said she did not know anything about the Armenian genocide, in which
more than 1 million people were killed starting in 1915, until she
researched it for the project.
"I think all of these people that died should be recognized,"
she said. "The only way you can stop stuff like this is by talking
about it."
The Cambodian genocide, which left an estimated 2 million people
dead at the hands of the Khmer Rouge in the 1970s, is more than just
an event in history for Thuch. Her parents were born in Cambodia,
and members of her family escaped the oppression, she said.
"My grandma was pregnant with my uncle and she walked for three days"
to escape, said Thuch, who wore a red T-shirt with an image of the
Cambodian temple Angkor Wat on the front. Her classmates sported
similar T-shirts on loan from Thuch's mother.
The personal connections of students Thuch and Rawel Chanloeung, 17,
who was born in Cambodia and whose parents lived through the genocide,
brought the project to life for Orange Grove students, said counselor
Lynda Bowie.
"It was exciting," she said, "but it was also disheartening."
Reach Michelle L. Klampe at 951-893-2114 or [email protected]