THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 19, 1995 TAG: 9510190010
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 36 lines
I am in shock over the column by Keith Monroe on Oct. 6.
Mr. Monroe said, ``in the rest of the country a man like Fuhrman would stand out. In the LAPD, he blended in.'' Is Mr. Monroe narrow-minded enough to believe that prejudice is a ``condition'' that belongs to that state alone? In a country that as been through a civil war, can you honestly believe that every city doesn't have its ``Mark Fuhrman'' and that some of them aren't police officers, librarians, city officials or even editorial writers? At least Fuhrman is open about his prejudice while Mr. Monroe has grouped Californians as prejudiced, psychic-seeking, psycho-wanna-be TV stars who hate and kill for attention.
I would also like to inform Mr. Monroe that there is more to California that L.A. and Hollywood. San Diego has a lot in common with Virginia's Hampton Roads, and just north of San Diego, you find smaller communities like LaJolla, Carlsbad, Vista and Escondido.
Prejudices like Mr. Monroe's make it hard for native Californians, like myself, to become part of your community. I am a typical citizen that believes you should not judge what you don't know.
Finally, the one thing we do agree on: The coverage of the trial was outrageous, but I think it had a lot to do with who the defendant was and the easy access to nationwide coverage.
TERESA CURLING
Virginia Beach, Oct. 8, 1995 by CNB