Recently, a note was found in an undisclosed bathroom on campus that said there would be a shooting at 12 p.m. on June 14. I was in the library from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. studying, completely unaware that there could be a shooting any minute. The only reason I was made aware of the note and the potential threat is because I noticed that, as opposed to the normal security guard, they had multiple police officers.
Upon inquiry as to why they were there, a man quietly told me about the note and even made a hand gesture, making his fingers look like a gun. He said that the officers arrived at the library at 11, only an hour earlier than the time the alleged shooting was to take place, and have been exchanging shifts ever since. He explained that they would continue to do so for a couple more hours to ensure that nothing would happen.
The officer went on to say he found out from one of his fellow police officers in essentially was a casual conversation. He said he assumed that the University was keeping it pretty “hush hush” as to not cause a panic, especially in light of the recent Orlando shooting.
I have received dozens of emails from LSU, reporting crimes and giving us directions to keep us safe. Though pestering at times, it is a necessary precaution that the University and LSUPD have to take for obvious reasons. Why wasn’t that done this time? The University has the power to almost instantly connect with the entire student body and inform them of danger, yet I and many others were left in the library, completely oblivious to the fact that we could have been shot at any time. The only time I was able to find out anything about the planned shooting, aside from the police officer, was online in the school newspaper that was posted an hour after the shooting was supposed to happen.
The University should not have the right to deprive the students of information that concerns our personal wellbeing. I don’t believe a single one of us who was in the library studying that afternoon would have been there if we had been informed of such a threat. The University has stated countless times that it cares about its students and that it will do everything in its power to keep us safe. How can they make a claim like that when they refuse to send out an email about a possible shooting in the middle of campus?
Why was the University so afraid that it would cause a panic when the vast majority of its students aren’t even on campus because of summer break? The only plausible answer is that the only people that they were really trying to keep from panicking are the parents and the newly enrolled freshmen that were on campus for their last day of orientation. They should be treated the same as all of us that are already attending school here and should have the right to know about a possible shooting.
Our lives should not be treated differently whether or not parents and new freshmen are on campus. It is our right to know and our right to act however we see fit, regardless if it is to panic. Universities and other organizations should not be able to conceal terror threats from students or anyone else that could be affected. Political relations and looking good to other colleges and potential new students should not be worth rolling the dice and hoping people don’t get shot. This is an outrage that should not be tolerated and be brought to light before the same thing happens again. I don’t want someone else gambling with my life, especially if I don’t even know about it.
Some students have voiced their disgust over the social media app Yik Yak, saying “Thanks LSU. I didn’t really want to be informed of a possible shooting in the library. I would rather daddle in ignorance until I hear shots.” Or “LSU really needs to get their priorities in order. They alert your Phone for robberies that have already occurred, But god forbid someone shoots up the school and … crickets.” There are more posts about other students’ reactions, but their quotes were slightly too passionate to be included in this letter.
I am sure that this is not the first time that this has happened, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. We need to make an effort as a student body to tell the University to stop gambling with our lives and start informing us of anything it can to help protect us, regardless of the consequences. Geaux Tigers.
William Gement
LSU Student