A Kuwaiti was beaten up by a black student because he looked Hispanic

Miguel Gonzalez:

Yuseff Esmail admits he feels paranoid whenever he's in school.

The 16-year-old Silverado High School student says he has no choice after he was injured in the right eye last October during a school fight between black and Hispanic students. Esmail was hit by a black student who apparently assumed that Esmail was Hispanic.

"I'm actually Kuwaiti. Somebody I never met decided to punch me in the eye because of my skin color," Esmail said.

He was attacked with a metal object that left him with 20/60 vision in his right eye and the fear he will be a target again.

Esmail's attacker was identified and punished but was allowed to come back to school, something that has angered Esmail's father.

"The best way to kill this problem is to get rid of the people who are causing the violence. That way all kids can feel secure in their learning environment," said Jacob Esmail.

Like many students in the area, Yuseff is tired of being picked on by gang members who feel they can intimidate students with no gang affiliation.

"When they ask me what gang I belong to, I say none and that's when these gang members feel they can beat me up. I am tired of feeling this way," said Esmail Yuseff.

According to a series of interviews with students in schools around the High Desert, many students in the area are now considering joining gangs so they can feel protected from this type of harassment.

"It's a hard time to be a teenager in the High Desert," said Maurice Bass, 17, who recently moved from Fontana to Victorville.

"Schools here are different. It's not just about having good grades, you also have to worry about your safety. If you look at somebody the wrong way, that's enough to cause a fight," said Bass, who says that at Silverado High School there is a huge amount of pressure to join gangs.

According to Victorville Sheriff Station Lieutenant Cliff Raynolds, the increase in gang activity in the High Desert has to do with more the increase of population in the area.

"People move from areas where gang activity is rampant and they bring that type of association here where it spreads out," Raynolds said.

Bass said recruitment of high school students has become a priority for gangs in the area.

Jacob Esmail says he's tired of hearing of the violence among students and says he worries about his son every time he goes to school.

"I am not at peace until he comes home. I am afraid that somebody might want to hurt my son again. That's why I have decided that I am not going to shut up and fight the system to prevent more violence," said Esmail, who is contemplating taking legal action against Silverado for what he calls a lack of protection for his son.

The gang problem is not limited to Silverado. High schools including Victor Valley, Granite Hills, Apple Valley, Sultana and Hesperia are also registering this phenomenon.

"It's something that's going on and that somebody has to do something about so our children are safe. Our kids can't live this way. This is already a hard age, we don't need to add gang violence to it," said Joanne Quarton, the mother of a student who was confronted by gang members last week.

Quarton says that at the beginning of the school year, her son asked to be moved out of the current school he attends.

"There is lots of drama all the time, my son did not want to deal with that," she said.

Victor Valley High School student Stephanie Hyman said two of the most influential gangs in her school are the Bloods and the Crips, two of the most notorious gangs in the Los Angeles area.

"They (gangs) are moving here because of the cheap housing. It would help our school to have more guards because some guards are scared to get attacked by gang members," said the 17-year-old.

So racially-integrated schools lead to gang violence? Wow, who would have guessed it?