Pasadena Oity College
Pasadena
chooses
its queen
For more
photos go to
pcccourier.com
Volume 96, Issue 10
“The Independent Student Voice ofPCC, Serving Pasadena Since 1915.
Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007
What's Inside
Elaine Hu
/
Courier
Arts
Wall-Art: Can graffiti
be considered art? Yon
decide. Page 5
( - \
Online Poll
Should Measure P funds be
used to help create a green
campus?
Vote at pcccourier.com
Last Week’s
Poll Results
As of 6 p.m. Wednesday, 58
percent of Courier online read¬
ers believed Futbol was the
better sport, while 42 percent
said Football.
)
Elaine Hu
/
Courier
Sports
Surfs Up: An extreme
sport used to bring bal¬
ance into a student’s
life. Page 8
Student ‘Died a Hero’
Elaine Hu
/
Courier
Rogelio Ramirez's mother, Irene Ramirez, sits in her Pasadena home looking at pic¬
tures of her son who was killed Aug. 26, five weeks after he was deployed to Iraq.
PCC Alumnus, Killed in Iraq
After Enlisting in the Marines,
Mourned by His Family
Christina Demirchyan
Flipside Editor
4йяН
: 4*
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Rogelio Ramirez
Getting into the Marine Corps was so important to Lance
Cpl. Rogelio Ramirez that he picked up a pair of scissors one
morning and cut off a tattoo recruiters
had deemed inappropriate.
A former PCC student, the 21-year-
old soldier died in Iraq on Aug. 26,
about five weeks after he was deployed.
“I would not have stopped him for
anything in the world,” said his mother
Irene Ramirez, a Pasadena resident,
“because it was something that was
very, very important to him, something
he wanted to do. He died a hero and we
are extremely proud of him.”
Before the Marines accepted him, Ramirez had to get his
GED, obtain 15 college credits - which he did at PCC -
remove and alter some of his tattoos, and pay off old truancy
tickets.
Although his mother knew that her son was intelligent, she
had hoped that going back to school would dissuade him from
wanting to join the Marines.
“In my mind, I knew he was smart, but he had lost the dis¬
cipline of wanting to study. Being a mother, I said he is not
going to make it, he won’t do it, I didn’t want him going off to
Iraq.”
She was happy that her son was reaching his goals, yet sad¬
dened by the idea that he was one step closer to going to Iraq.
“He passed [his tests and classes] with flying colors,” she said.
Before Ramirez went to Iraq, he was able to celebrate his
21st birthday with his family. According to his mother, “he got
very emotional and said ‘I’m going to fight for all of you, not
just for me.’ He joined the marine corps to better himself,
which he did, but he also had that purpose,” she said, referring
to her son’s desire to fight for his family and for his country.
“I remember Rogelio very well,” said Associate Professor
Simonetta May. “He was in my Italian 1 class and in the begin¬
ning he did well [because] his Spanish background helped him
along. Then, he started falling behind, and when I talked with
him about his progress, he told me about joining the Marines
and his need to pass the class to achieve [that] goal.”
See ‘Soldier’ - on Page 3
Iraq War Protested
Jason Lowder
Staff Writer
In what seems to have become protest sea¬
son, an anti-war march by PCC students to a
military recruitment center across the street
from campus was held on Friday.
The ant-war demonstration and the action
in front of the Pasadena military recruitment
center followed Sep. 20 Jena 6 action, the Oct.
19 anti-police brutality demonstration, and the
Oct. 22 march and rally in Los Angeles.
Protestors used caution tape in Friday’s
march to block out the entrance to the center
and pasted flyers on the door that read, “crime
scene” and “armed and dangerous.” Motorists
would pass by and honk in support.
Army Spc. Agustin Aguayo, told his story of
being imprisoned for refusing a second deploy¬
ment in Iraq, and refusing to load his weapon
while in country. According to his wife Helga,
The U.S. Supreme Court will recognize him as
a conscientious objector.
Friday’s demonstration was a prelude to
See ‘War’ - on Page 3
Elaine Hu
/
Courier
Anti-war activist holds a sign to gain support from
commuters on Friday across the street from the
campus on Colorado Boulevard.
For exclusive stories and photos check out the Courier on the web @ pcccourier.com