Like this place wasn’t weird enough as it was.
On two separate occasions last week, UMass students were robbed at gunpoint.
Last Wednesday in Washington Dormitory, two men robbed a student in his own room. One of the men showed a gun, and the student gave up the prescription medicine that the men were after. On Thursday, two men entered Chadbourne Dormitory with a semi-automatic handgun. They robbed two residents of cash and marijuana.
Behavior like this is a threat to us all. It cannot be tolerated.
UMass police have warned us all to close and lock our dorm rooms – even if we’re there. Is this fair? Is this reasonable?
UMass as a community deserves better than this. No one should have to live in fear. Students should not be concerned with their livelihoods, or their personal possessions, or their lives. ESPECIALLY their lives.
Unfortunately, for at least two different groups of students, it’s a reality. Twice last week, some of our very own gave up their possessions because they had no alternative. They feared for their safety.
So what do we do to stop this? What do we do to prevent this from happening to other students or ourselves?
First, anyone who knows anything needs to come clean. It’s too important to the safety of our campus.”Being a fink,” or “ratting someone out.” – they’re not considered to be honorable things. Realistically, though, it’s the right thing to do. People who resort to violence or the threat of violence need to know that it isn’t acceptable, and that the UMass community as a whole will do its very best to find those responsible for it. There is no better thing that anyone in the know could do for all of us than to call the police hotline, 577-8477, anonymously and get what they know about these robberies out in the open.
What would have happened if there had been a struggle? What would have happened if someone had been shot? Last week’s events are disturbing, but they could have been a whole lot worse. Next time, they very well could be.
If something looks seriously suspicious, tell someone. If you’ve got a neighbor down the hall that looks like “trouble”, keep an eye on him/her. Living in a dorm room is no different than living back home in our neighborhoods. Neighborhood watches? It sounds corny, but the practice wouldn’t be a bad idea.
We’ve got to take care of our own. We’ve got to keep a watchful eye out for our neighbors. Say something. Do something. Now. Stand up for yourself and for your fellow UMass residents.
What happened last week was upsetting. If someone gets shot in similar circumstances this semester, it will be tragedy. And we’ll have no one to blame but ourselves.
Unsigned editorials are the majority opinion of the Collegian editorial staff.
Information from the Hampshire Gazette was used in the writing of this editorial.