Another tragedy has entered America’s history with the death of nine victims during a campus shooting at Umpqua Community College in Oregon on Thursday.
A single gunman entered one classroom, shot the professor, and forced all the students to sit down in the middle of the room. According to surviving witnesses, the gunman asked each student to stand and asked each of them, in turn, questions of whether or not they were Christians or other religions. Surviving witnesses reported that the gunman shot them regardless of their answer.
Along with the nine murdered, nine more were injured during the shooting.
This recent shooting has yet again raised concerns over campus safety and gun control. With the amount of campus shootings in the past few years, people are justified in being afraid that something could happen on their own campuses.
I have consistently seen concern about campus safety throughout the years, and this weekend was no exception. Fellow students stated on social media that they no longer feel safe in their classes and were expressing concern over their campuses’ own safety precautions.
Are these concerns fair? Yes.
According to a broadcast report by Kristine Frazao, with Sinclair Broadcast Group, “Last year there were 31 shootings on U.S. college campuses. In 2015, that number has reached 17. Of those schools, seven don’t allow their security personnel to carry weapons on campus.”
The problem is that campus shootings cannot be predicted. No one, except for a shooter, can ever know when a shooting is going to happen. These shootings are not a result of the actions of campus police and security, but simply the fault of the shooter.
This uncertainty is what causes students to be afraid for the likeliness of something similar happening on their own campuses. But if we live in constant fear, then shooters have already completed part of their goal.
So what can we students do about campus safety?
You have to always be cautious. Enjoy your life, classes and college events, but don’t be careless or unaware of your surroundings. Always being aware of your surroundings can be a huge measure to better ensure your safety.
Now am I saying that these students were not aware of their surroundings? No. Their classroom was chosen by the shooter and there was nowhere for them to go. But the other students in the college were able to be aware of their surroundings and exit the building.
You can also report anything that you think is concerning. If you see anything on campus, you can report it to police. Your safety and the safety of otheres are important and being cautionary is never a bad thing. Look for any warning signs in those around you, should a concern be raised. You can never be too cautious. This, of course, does not mean that you should be concerned about every single person and misinterpret every action of those around you. Just be aware and alert.
According to the safety guidelines for active shooter situations on campus from the university police of Northwestern University, students should follow certain actions such as remaining calm, warning others of the danger, locking any doors and windows, turning off the lights, closing the blinds, silencing all cell phones, taking adequate cover and staying away from the windows, and, if you are able, calling 911 to inform officials of the situation and location.
So what about gun control?
The National Rifle Association states that Virginia’s purchase and possession law is that, “No state permit is required to otherwise purchase or possess a rifle, shotgun or handgun. Virginia residents may purchase firearms from any licensed Federal Firearms Licensee, even if they are out of state.”
Even though shootings are horrible tragedies, I believe that strict gun control should not apply to citizens who have clean records and no concerning mental health histories.
Here is my simple reasoning for this: if you apply strict gun control to “clean” citizens, this will only hurt them. Not all “clean” citizens will use guns correctly; shooters are evidence of this. But if we apply strict gun control to citizens, the “bad guys” will not be affected. They will always find guns. It doesn’t matter what we do. They will find a way.
This is not meant to be depressing or discouraging. I just mean to present my own logical reasoning. Gun control will help make it more difficult for certain individuals to obtain guns, but it will not stop them.
That being said, I don’t believe that students should be allowed to have guns on campus. Many universities and colleges don’t allow guns on campus, and I think this safety precaution possibly keeps more incidents from happening.
Think about it: college students plus guns plus alcohol. This is not a great combination and I believe anyone could agree with this. As much as we would like to place faith into our fellow college students to make wise decisions, those decisions just don’t happen frequently enough to even entertain the idea of allowing guns on campus.
There could also be a greater increase in suicides.
This may seem contradictory to my former point about gun control. But the factors involved in a campus environment provide too much opportunity to make mistakes.
So, in the end, what are we supposed to do?
Just be adequately concerned about campus shootings that do happen, be aware, be informed, don’t worry too much and enjoy your life.
Respond to the poll to voice your own viewpoint.
