Offensive fliers containing derogatory language targeting the Armenian community were found near Glenoaks Elementary School in Glendale on Friday, according to the Glendale Police Department.
The police did not describe the specific language or any images that were found on the fliers, but said they are investigating the matter as a hate incident.
Glendale is home to one of the largest Armenian communities outside Armenia.
“We have not established if these materials, as they stand, constitute a prosecutable criminal offense. However, our investigators are working to identify the individual or individuals responsible, understand their motive and determine whether there is any additional conduct that may constitute a crime,” the police department said in a statement.
The police said that they have been in contact with the Glendale Unified School District, “who are aware of the incident and are assisting us wherever appropriate.”
The fliers were “designed to look like folded $100 bills,” and when opened, they displayed “an insulting reference to Armenians and the message, ‘THIS IS AMERICA NOT STUPID ARMENIA,’” according to the Armenian Report, an online community news outlet based in Glendale.
The publication noted the incident occurred just days after the school began its immersion Western Armenian dual-language program, which local officials described as the first of its kind in the United States.
“Our community worked for years to make the Western Armenian Dual Language Immersion Program a reality, and this week we should be celebrating what that means for our children and future generations,” Lucy Petrosian, chair of ANCA Glendale, a grassroots Armenian American advocacy organization, told the paper.
“Our children deserve to learn their language, celebrate their heritage and feel safe doing so,” she said.
The material was scattered throughout the residential area surrounding the school.
ANCA Glendale has reported on other recent incidents involving Armenian institutions in the Los Angeles area, including anti-Armenian material being left at churches and community centers and vandalism at Armenian schools.
“Glendale is a diverse community, and it is our duty to ensure that everyone feels safe in their neighborhoods and around their schools. Conduct that reasonably causes fear or concern within our community is going to be thoroughly investigated by the Glendale Police Department and take action appropriately based on what is found,” said the police department.
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