San Leandro High Officials Try to Quell Race Fights

Inside Bay Area Racial tensions spilled over Wednesday afternoon in a standoff involving hundreds of Latino and African-American students at San Leandro High School, leading to 10 arrests, according to police and school administrators.

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“All of a sudden, it had just become a very racial thing,” Furtado said. “I think tensions have been exacerbated tremendously by the immigration debate going on.”

Furtado said the presence of 10 to 15 police officers on Wednesday likely diffused the situation before it got worse. Sensing that such problems might occur after Tuesday’s fight, Furtado said, she had called in extra security. And on Wednesday morning, before the standoff, mediators pulled students out of class to try to resolve conflicts and rumors.

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