The news of the recent assaults around campus has been very disturbing for me to think about. Student-on-student violence is a terrible thing and it will never solve any problem. However, the real problem that has emerged has been the student reactions to these assaults. As we all know there were numerous students who witnessed the Halloween attacks, but not one student stepped forward to speak. Not one student called the police as the attack was taking place. I have a couple of points brought up by the most recent assault that I would like to briefly touch on.
Most students have probably seen the Facebook group that was started in support of the victim, which I think is great. However, some of the messages left in the group and on the anonymous UNH message board really made me question the integrity of some of my fellow students. There were several students who blindly claimed that this victim deserved what happened because he probably mouthed off to the suspects. I am sorry, but I do not see how saying a few words would allow someone to be beaten unconscious by at least three other people. According to the police reports, that attack was random and unprovoked. But even if words were spoken, there is no justification for what happened.
On these same message boards, rumors quickly spread over a girl who allegedly had a video recording of the attack. This girl and the other bystanders were afraid to come forward because they feared getting arrested. First of all, these people need to realize it is more important to help the police find these suspects then protecting themselves from the law. Who knows, maybe the suspects will strike again and it all could have been prevented if these witnesses immediately came forward. This is one of the many reasons why UNH needs to adopt a "Good Samaritan Policy," something that 91 college campuses already have in place.
I was very pleased to learn that the student senate is currently trying to get such a policy passed, which would allow students to call for medical help or police assistance for an emergency involving drugs or alcohol without getting arrested or facing severe punishment from the school. This policy would keep students from hesitating to contact authorities when a situation goes out of hand. Policies like these have been extremely successful for the health and well being of students at schools across the country. I feel that a policy like this at UNH would greatly increase the chances of someone contacting authorities, which in the long run could save a life. Students, I ask you to reconsider your priorities. Putting yourself ahead of the safety of your fellow students is sad and any witnesses who refused to come forward should be ashamed of themselves.
I know that the factor of police techniques on campus has been brought up before, but I feel it is necessary to reexamine the situation. I understand that the campus police can only do so much, but I also know that extra police were called in for Halloween weekend. To make alcohol related arrests. I know that the police arrived on the scene very quickly, but maybe a better game plan by the police could have prevented this from happening. I am not a police commissioner nor am I an expert on policing techniques, but it would make more sense to me for cops to spend more time patrolling different areas of campus. I can't believe how many times I have been to the Durham House of Pizza during my time at UNH only to see three or four cops parked across the street. Is that really necessary? Would it not be more efficient for the campus police to spread out in order to protect the students of UNH? These are questions that our local authorities really need to think about.
Lastly, I would like to thank President Huddleston for his letter last week. He could not have been more right when he said that UNH is a community and students need to look out for one another. If there is a "next time," and hopefully there is not, maybe someone will call the police before things get out of hand. Let us learn from this experience in order to make changes to further strengthen the community of UNH.
Stay classy, not UMassy,
The New Hampshirite
The New Hampshirite is a mysterious UNH student who entertains much of the campus with his politically incorrect and realistic accounts of student life in Durham. You can find his blog at http://unhblog.com.
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