A banner from Anderson University, on display in front of Burruss Hall, reads "We are all Hokies today as we share in your grief, may God grant you strength for the dark days ahead, solace for your pain and suffering, and courage for a brighter tomorrow."
A student mourned for the victims in front of the Hokie stone memorial site of the drillfield one week after the shooting.
Chinese students were making origami cranes
On April 20, the VT-ACSS organized a donation on the drillfield. In this photo, several Chinese students were making origami cranes. The Chinese community of Blacksburg uses the "1000 cranes" to express grief and remembrance.
People tied yellow florets on the poles around the campus. Photo taken April 19,2007
Orange and black ribbons were tied on trees around the campus of Virginia Tech three days after the tragety.
Virginia Tech tragedy unites VU community
by Joan Brasher News of the events of April 16, 2007 - a violent shooting on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg, Va., that resulted in the deaths of 33 students and faculty members - sent chills down the spines of all within earshot of a television, radio or the Internet. University students, faculty and staff across the nation and the world watched the media coverage in stunned silence, as the death toll escalated and the convoluted details slowly became clear. For many students, the first reaction to the shocking event was fear, said Vanderbilt Student Government Association President Cara Bilotta, a junior. "As you watch the tragedy unfold on TV, you cannot help but think, 'Could this happen here?'" Bilotta said. "Your initial reaction is fear of the unknown. The question is, could any university really prevent an incident like Virginia Tech? The good news is that Vanderbilt has always taken a proactive approach to security." University communities nationwide, even those with no direct relationship to the victims, were hard hit, and campus administrators quickly convened not only to reach out to Virginia Tech's faculty, staff and students, but to re-evaluate crisis preparedness on their respective campuses. Chancellor Gordon Gee communicated with the Vanderbilt community via e-mail shortly after the shooting, stating, "Words fail to encompass a calamity of such magnitude. At this raw stage, we can offer our attention, our consideration and our sympathy. We respond with the best part of ourselves." He encouraged students to take advantage of the university's psychological counseling services, seek out religious life groups or turn to resident advisers for support. All Faiths Chapel on the first floor of Vanderbilt Divinity School was made available for reflection, meditation and prayer. Two days after the shooting, a candlelight vigil was held at Benton Chapel. Vanderbilt chaplains, as well as representatives from Tennessee State University, Belmont University, Lipscomb University and Fisk University, conducted the service sponsored by the Middle Tennessee Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association. Mourners gathered to seek comfort and memorialize loved ones lost. Vanderbilt students who knew victims of the shooting also shared their stories and remembrances. For Joshua Parlaman, a Virginia Tech alumnus who works as a research assistant at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development, it was too soon to attend a memorial service. Instead, to assuage his grief he reached out to former classmates and family members. Having the support of his Vanderbilt colleagues was invaluable, he said. "Being at Vanderbilt at this time has been both comforting and humbling," Parlaman said. "The solidarity expressed by Vanderbilt students, faculty and staff has really moved me. I realize how deeply this has affected us all, uniting everyone with those at Virginia Tech." As Vanderbilt students, their parents, faculty and staff raised questions of security, Vanderbilt's administration quickly responded with explanations of the existing measures in place. Campus safety officials compiled and distributed a fact sheet that addressed concerns, such as identifying students with potential behavior problems, and included information on safety, law enforcement and emergency communications. On April 20, a free emergency alert text-messaging service was set up for students, faculty and staff, made available through Vanderbilt's existing text-messaging service, MobileVU. "The recent tragedy at Virginia Tech has highlighted the importance of rapid and accurate communications during emergency situations, and particularly the value of cell phone text messaging to relay important information," said Michael Schoenfeld, vice chancellor for public affairs. "With 330 acres, 233 buildings and as many as 40,000 people on campus during a busy work day, reaching every individual presents a challenge. Emergency text messaging ... is an important addition to the existing communications channels." At noon on April 23, a week after the incident, a moment of silence was observed on Vanderbilt's campus as the bells at Kirkland Hall tolled 32 times, once for each person slain by gunman Seung-hui Cho. Students, dressed in Virginia Tech's school colors of maroon and orange, congregated at the Sarratt Promenade, where representatives of Vanderbilt's student government distributed commemorative ribbons, while students, faculty and staff wrote words of encouragement in a leather-bound book emblazoned with the Vanderbilt seal, a gift for the Virginia Tech student government. A banner hanging behind the signing table read, "Today we are all Hokies." "There were those who had friends (at Virginia Tech), or friends of friends there, and because of how connected we are through the university community, people wanted to reach out," Bilotta said. "Some students simply signed their name, others wrote detailed messages, saying 'I knew someone there, I feel for you.' I think that was a great way to help students heal and begin the recovery process." "Fortunately, I did not know anyone killed or injured on April 16," Parlaman said. "This tragedy does, however, take a personal toll. Virginia Tech and Blacksburg were my home for four years. ... I feel a sense of sorrow knowing that what was my safe haven is now forever scarred with the memory of these horrific events." Though the recovery process will take time, Bilotta said she feels hopeful about what is to come. "I think Virginia Tech is starting to move forward," she said. "We are grieving, but we are moving forward to get beyond this awful tragedy and hope for a more peaceful future." -- Original Source: Vanderbilt University Daily Register - April 17, 2007
Joan Brasher <joan.brasher@vanderbilt.edu>
Shooting proves need for gun control laws
By: Joe Bialek Posted: 5/2/07 The shooting crisis at Virginia Tech has once again sparked the debate about gun control. The second amendment of the United States Constitution states: "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Obviously the need for a state militia has been replaced by the National Guard and Coast Guard whereby trained military personnel are entrusted with the defense of this country against domestic enemies. Their weapons are tightly controlled and safeguarded. The only two reasons for a citizen to own a firearm are for hunting or defense of the household from intruders. In either case, ownership of a handgun, shotgun or shoulder rifle is more than adequate to satisfy these purposes. There is absolutely no need for any U.S. civilian to own any weapon more powerful or sophisticated than these. Accordingly, all handguns, shotguns and shoulder rifles must be licensed and registered to the degree necessary to match weapon to owner at the click of a computer key. Furthermore, if we had prohibited the purchase of more sophisticated weapons, several innocent victims would not have died at the hands of Cho Seung-Hui. Joe Bialek Cleveland, Ohio -- Original Source:The Lantern - May 2, 2007
Israel Professor, Murdered Saving Students At Virginia Tech, Buried in Ra'anana
By Joel Leyden Israel News Agency Jerusalem ----April 19...... In a remarkable act of sacrifice and bravery, a 75-year-old Israel professor and Holocaust survivor was murdered in the massacre at Virginia Tech on Holocaust Memorial Day, Monday when he leaped between the crazed gunner and his students. According to eye witnesses the heroic action of Liviu Librescu, a lecturer in the Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, saved the lives of an unknown number of students in his class. Asael Arad, an Israeli Virginia Tech student told Israel Army Radio that "all the students lived - because of him,". The last person to see Professor Liviu Librescu alive appears to have been Alec Calhoun, a student at Virginia Tech who turned as he prepared to leap from a high classroom window to see the elderly academic holding shut the classroom door. The student jumped, and lived. Minutes later, the professor was shot dead. Librescu's wife told the NRG Web site that her husband had loved his job with "all his heart and his soul." Librescu was a gifted scientist in Romania, and the government tried to prevent him from moving to Israel. He was eventually allowed to leave the country after then Israel Prime Minister Menachem Begin made a special appeal to President Nicolae Ceausescu, Ynetnews reported. Librescu immigrated to Israel from Romania in 1978 but moved to Virginia in 1986 for his sabbatical and had remained their ever since. The professor has two sons, one named Arieh who lives in Israel, and another, Joe, who resides in the US. Librescu was described by his colleagues as a "true gentleman." He was one of 32 people murdered in what has been described as the biggest single shooting attack in US history. Between his first and second bursts of gunfire, the Virginia Tech gunman mailed a package to NBC News containing pictures of him brandishing weapons and video of him delivering a diatribe about getting even with rich people. NBC said that a time stamp on the package indicated the material was mailed in the two-hour window between the first burst of gunfire in a high-rise dormitory and the second fusillade, at a classroom building. Thirty-three people died in the rampage, including the gunman, 23-year-old student Cho Seung-Hui from South Korea, who committed suicide. The package included a manifesto that "rants against rich people and warns that he wants to get even," according to a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the case. Late Wednesday, MSNBC showed a photo from the package of Cho glaring at the camera, his arms outstretched with a gun in each hand. He wears a khaki-colored military-style vest, fingerless gloves and a backwards, black baseball cap. "NBC Nightly News" planned to show some of the material Wednesday night. Virginia Tech reported shootings on two sides of the 2,600-acre campus, the first at about 7:15 a.m. at a co-ed residential hall called West Ambler Johnston, and resuming about two hours later at Norris Hall, an engineering building. According to students, at around 7:15 a.m. the gunman appeared in West Ambler Johnston and began searching rooms for his ex-girlfriend. He killed two people, Ryan Clark, and a freshman identified by students as Emily Hilscher. In the second attack, the gunman shot professors and students in classrooms and hallways of the engineering building, killing around 30 people. The carnage ended Monday with the gunman shooting himself in the face. There were 33 deaths in total. Students complained that the university did not adequately warn them about the gunman until over two hours after the first incident and around the time that the second round of killings began. At that time, an e-mail was sent. Virginia Tech President Charles Steger defended the university, saying authorities believed the shooting at the dorm was a domestic clash and an isolated incident. They also mistakenly thought the gunman had left the campus. "We had no reason to suspect any other incident was going to occur," Steger said. He added, "We can only make decisions based on the information you had on the time. You don't have hours to reflect on it." Steger explained that it was difficult to inform everyone at Virginia Tech because there were thousands of people arriving to the campus on Monday morning. "Today the university was struck with a tragedy that we consider of monumental proportions," Steger said. "The university is shocked and indeed horrified." In his speech at the United State Holocaust Memorial, US President George W. Bush paid tribute to Liviu Librescu, the aeronautics engineering professor who died while trying to save students during the shooting spree at Virginia Polytechnic Institute. "That day we saw horror, but we also saw acts of quiet courage. We saw this courage in a teacher named Liviu Librescu. With the gunman set to enter his class, this brave professor blocked the door with his body while his students fled to safety. On the Day of Remembrance, this Holocaust survivor gave his own life so that others might live. And this morning we honor his memory, and we take strength from his example." President Bush said. Liviu Librescu's body was transported to Israel, on Wednesday, to be buried at the cemetery of the central Israel town of Ra'anana. Marilena, his wife, also flew also from New York Wednesday and due to arrive in Tel Aviv today, 37-year-old son Arieh told Deutsche Presse-Agentur in a telephone interview. -- Original Source:http://www.israelnewsagency.com/liviulibrescuvirgintechheroraananaisrael48041907.html
Joel Leyden,Publisher;israelnewsagency@gmail.com
Tears, Pride for Holocaust Survivor, Virginia Tech Librescu At Israel Funeral
By Joel Leyden Israel News Agency Jerusalem ----April 21...... "Daddy, tell me the story again," said the 6-year-old girl. "Tell me how he saved the big children." It had been hours earlier in this pristine, palm tree lined Ra'anana cemetery that hundreds stood mourning and praising Holocaust survivor and Virginia Tech hero for sacrificing his life so that his students would live. "He was a good man," said Amanda. "Will he come back to life now?" she asked. It was this young girl's first trip to a cemetery. I explained to her that in life we are born in hospitals, live our lives and then we are buried in cemeteries. "We will all be buried in a cemetery, but some people die from old age, others from diseases, but this man - he was a hero. He was buried here because he gave life to the big children in Virginia," I told her. A link to exclusive INA video of the Liviu Librescu funeral in Ra'anana appears here I had promised my daughter when picking her up from her mother's home that we were going to visit a real hero. Heroes come and go. Moshe Dayan is credited for many acts of bravery, including opening up the City of Jerusalem with Yitzhak Rabin in 1967. David Ben-Gurion had the wisdom and leadership to win Israel's battle for independence, creating the modern Jewish state of Israel. But Dayan and Ben-Gurion, who became myths larger than life, had also been criticized. Ben-Gurion for attacking an Irgun ship - the Altalena and Dayan for stealing and selling archaeological treasures from Israel soil. They had both been in the public spotlight for many years. Their achievements were many. Their faults were few but still they were mere mortals. But Liviu Librescu was a hero with no baggage. He had survived the Nazi holocaust, he had survived persecution in communist Romania. Only to find peace and tranquility teaching in the hills of Virginia - until last Monday. In a remarkable act of sacrifice and bravery, the 75-year-old Israel professor and Holocaust survivor was murdered in the massacre at Virginia Tech on Holocaust Memorial Day, when he leaped between the crazed gunner and his students. According to eye witnesses the heroic action of Liviu Librescu, a lecturer in the Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, saved the lives of an unknown number of students in his class. Asael Arad, an Israeli Virginia Tech student told Israel Army Radio that "all the students lived - because of him." The last person to see Professor Liviu Librescu alive appears to have been Alec Calhoun, a student at Virginia Tech who turned as he prepared to leap from a high classroom window to see the elderly academic holding shut the classroom door. The student jumped, and lived. Minutes later, the professor was shot dead. The professor was popular among students and colleagues alike, and his ultimate sacrifice on Monday will cement that reputation. The last stop on Cho Seung-Hui's killing spree was Librescu's classroom. The professor blocked the unlockable door with his body to hold out Cho while shouting for his students to escape through the classroom windows. Cho overpowered Librescu, pushed his way into the room and shot the professor in the head. All of his students survived. Librescu's wife told the NRG Web site that her husband had loved his job with "all his heart and his soul." Librescu was a gifted scientist in Romania, and the government tried to prevent him from moving to Israel. He was eventually allowed to leave the country after then Israel Prime Minister Menachem Begin made a special appeal to President Nicolae Ceausescu, Ynetnews reported. Librescu immigrated to Israel from Romania in 1978 but moved to Virginia in 1986 for his sabbatical and had remained their ever since. The professor has two sons, one named Arieh who lives in Israel, and another, Joe, who resides in the US. Librescu was described by his colleagues as a "true gentleman." He was one of 33 people murdered in what has been described as the biggest single shooting attack in US history. They all had died in the rampage, including the gunman, 23-year-old student Cho Seung-Hui from South Korea, who committed suicide. Cho, who had sent a package to NBC News between the first and second shooting attacks at Virginia Tech, stated in a manifesto that he hated rich people and warned that he would get even. These facts emerged from a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak about the case. Late Wednesday, MSNBC showed a photo from the package of Cho glaring at the camera, his arms outstretched with a gun in each hand. He wears a khaki-colored military-style vest, fingerless gloves and a backwards, black baseball cap. Virginia Tech reported shootings on two sides of the 2,600-acre campus, the first at about 7:15 a.m. at a co-ed residential hall called West Ambler Johnston, and resuming about two hours later at Norris Hall, an engineering building. According to students, at around 7:15 a.m. the gunman appeared in West Ambler Johnston and began searching rooms for his ex-girlfriend. He killed two people, Ryan Clark, and a freshman identified by students as Emily Hilscher. In the second attack, the gunman shot professors and students in classrooms and hallways of the engineering building, killing around 30 people. The carnage ended Monday with the gunman shooting himself in the face. Students complained that the university did not adequately warn them about the gunman until over two hours after the first incident and around the time that the second round of killings began. At that time, an e-mail was sent. Virginia Tech President Charles Steger defended the university, saying authorities believed the shooting at the dorm was a domestic clash and an isolated incident. They also mistakenly thought the gunman had left the campus. "We had no reason to suspect any other incident was going to occur," Steger said. He added, "We can only make decisions based on the information you had on the time. You don't have hours to reflect on it." Steger explained that it was difficult to inform everyone at Virginia Tech because there were thousands of people arriving to the campus on Monday morning. As controversy continues to grow regarding the apparent lack of proper security response to the first shooting, and why with a shooting suspect loose, was there no shut down of the Virginia Tech campus, many have started to heal their wounds, leaving the anger stage and moving onto grief. Now focusing on the positive aspects of humanity, the acts of courage and bravery which occurred during this bloody massacre. In his speech at the United State Holocaust Memorial, US President George W. Bush paid tribute to Liviu Librescu, the aeronautics engineering professor who died while trying to save students during the shooting spree at Virginia Polytechnic Institute. "That day we saw horror, but we also saw acts of quiet courage. We saw this courage in a teacher named Liviu Librescu. With the gunman set to enter his class, this brave professor blocked the door with his body while his students fled to safety. On the Day of Remembrance, this Holocaust survivor gave his own life so that others might live. And this morning we honor his memory, and we take strength from his example." President Bush said. Liviu Librescu's body was transported to Israel last Wednesday, to be buried at the Kfar Nachman cemetery of the central Israel town of Ra'anana. Marilena, his wife, also flew also from New York Wednesday arrived in Tel Aviv Thursday, 37-year-old son Arieh told Deutsche Presse-Agentur in a telephone interview. The funeral was attended by some 500 friends, family members, foreign diplomats and others who came to this Israel cemetery to pay their respects to this Jewish hero. The funeral was to begin at 10 a.m. on a clear, sun drenched day. Speaking at the ceremony, Librescu's son Joe wearing a ripped black shirt, reflected on the questions he had never asked his father. It is Jewish custom to rip a part of your clothes when mourning a relative. "They're asking me today about your past, and I don't know what to tell them," he said. "I'm proud of you. I walk today with my head held high." "Sometimes I didn't hear you, but my ears are now wide open to your legacy," he went on. "I'm doing my best, reaching to the moon - I know I can reach it because of you." Librescu's wife, Marlena, had lost any remnants of composure. She spoke to her husband Liviu who was wrapped in a white and black prayer shawl according to Jewish tradition. "My sweetheart, I am in such pain. So much pain. I have lost not just a husband, but my best friend," she said. "I was blessed to be with him each day for 42 years - to learn from his wisdom, to receive his advice - and I thank you for giving me our two children. I'm now blessed to be with them," said Marlena. "It's so painful for me to think of your last moments, in which you suffered. I'll never know what went through your mind, but I hope very much that wherever you are, you will watch over your family," Librescu's weeping wife, Marlena, said. "I ask forgiveness from you for every time I upset you. I hope you will protect your family from where you reside now," she said, adding, "I have only the good left from you.... May it go easy for you, my sweetheart." The professor's other son, Arie, said his father had "always said to be strong." "Father, I believe that at this moment you're looking down on us from above and saying, what is all this crowing around? I only did what I had to do. From our childhood, you taught us to care for people, to work hard, to succeed, but you never taught us to be heroes. It is more theoretical a lesson than aerodynamics," he said. "A hero must have the right combination of certain attributes, and you had them." According to Arie, his father "used every spare minute to do what he loved." Speaking of his father's teaching, Librescu said that "the courses in aerodynamics have ended. On the 16th of the month, you started a new career, teaching a new subject - heroism - which millions of students are learning." Arie thanked family, friends and neighbors in Israel and around the world for all they had done for the family - and particularly for his mother - in their time of loss. He added special thanks for "a righteous man, an organization, Chabad, someone who drove five hours to mother [the day of the shooting] and made sure the body would come to Israel as soon as possible." Rabbi Danny Cohen, a Chabad representative in Hebron and a close friend of Arie, said at the funeral that "Librescu's last act lit a fire of unity throughout the world. This evening, tens of thousands of Jewish women will light Shabbat candles at the special request of Marlena." Librescu's wife stated that lighting Shabbat candles was his favorite mitzvah. Speaking to The Jerusalem Post, Arie said his mother would now move to back Israel once she has completed the arrangements in the US. Gheorghe Angelescu, adviser to the president of Romania, presented Marlena Librescu at the funeral with the Grand Cross of Romania - the country's highest civilian honor, which was previously granted to the prime ministers of France and Italy. Librescu was given the award for his scientific achievements and the heroism surrounding his death. According to Angelescu, Librescu "was a very important scientist - not just for Israel or Romania, but for the world." Liviu Librescu was murdered on Holocaust Memorial Day and buried on Hitler's birthday. It appears that his act of bravery has reinforced one day and has overshadowed the other. A child in Nazi-allied Romania during Second World War, Librescu was deported along with his family to a labour camp in Transnistria and then to a central ghetto in the city of Focsani, his son said. According to a report compiled by the Romanian government in 2004, between 280,000 and 380,000 Jews were killed by the Romanian regime during the war. Librescu later worked as an engineer at Romania's aerospace agency under the postwar Communist government, his son recounted, but his career was stymied in the 1970s because he refused to swear allegiance to the regime. He was later fired when he requested permission to move to Israel. After years of government refusal, according to his son, Israel Prime Minister Menachem Begin personally intervened to get the family emigration permits. They moved to Israel in 1978. The family left Israel in 1985 for Virginia, where Librescu took a position teaching mathematics and engineering at Virginia Tech. "Daddy, who is worse, Hezbollah or Cho," my daughter asked as we stood over Liviu Librescu's grave. A small white sign bearing Librescu's name in Hebrew stood next to earth which was decorated with several colorful wreaths and flowers. "They are both bad. But today we are here to say thank you to a hero." My small daughter picked up a small white stone from a basket sitting next to the grave. She placed the stone on the freshly packed brown dirt. "Goodbye professor teacher who saved us. Goodbye." -- Original Source: Israel News Agency http://www.israelnewsagency.com/liviulibrescuvirginiatechherofuneralisraelholocaust48042107.html
Security discussions arise after shootings
By Joel Runck Statesman Staff Reporter In light of the massacre at Virginia Tech on April 16, security protocols are being reevaluated and modified at campuses nationwide. UMD is also devising and implementing measures to improve security and emergency response. "I would say that the most effective means of notification that we have—and we've just installed this in the last six months— is our tone-alert radios," said Greg Fox, UMD vice chancellor of finance and operations. "Most frequently they would be used for weather emergencies, but they are also available for live-time communication for other emergencies as well." With 60 such radios distributed across major departments at UMD, locations in possession of tone-alert radios can correspond with agencies such as law enforcement and the National Weather Service during specific types of emergencies. "It's kind of the same philosophy as the old weather radios," said Joe Michela, director of UMD Auxiliary Services. "Now we have them around campus, but we have own antenna and receiver ... so that's how we get the message out to warn (people)." Michela said that during a gunman-at-large scenario, the radios would be used to notify campus police who would then notify Duluth police departments across the city. The most recent use of these radios other than monthly testing, occurred during the snowstorm closing in March. Currently, UMD has 10 licensed police officers on payroll and after massacre at Virginia Tech occurred, that same night, two officers were stationed throughout residence halls, according to Fox. In addition to police presence, Fox said that UMD has more than 100 surveillance cameras, which are primarily located in residence hall parking lots. Furthermore, Fox speculates that UMD will be receiving $300,000 from the U of M -Twin Cities Central Security to install cameras that will monitor people entering and exiting residence hall buildings. Other buildings under video surveillance include Swenson Science, the Sports and Health Center and the library. While deterrence is one measure, communicating during an emergency situation is quite another. On the day of the massacre at Virginia Tech, two individuals were gunned-down in a dormitory around 7:15 a.m. More than two hours later, 30 more people were killed in classrooms at Norris Hall, about a half-mile away on Tech's campus, according to the Associated Press. Tech sent out the first e-mail warning in regard to the first shooting at approximately 9:36 a.m. "E-mail was never intended to be a form of emergency communication," said Susan Latto, director of UMD Public Relations. On April 18, a bomb threat occurred at the U of M-Twin Cities campus, which resulted in the evacuations of several campus buildings. Latto, who has received training in emergency and crisis communication by both the State of Minnesota and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said that UMD strives to have efficient response systems in place "It's like buying car insurance," Latto said. "You always hope that you will never get in an accident just because you have insurance." Certain students have not changed their behavior patterns since the Virginia Tech incident and feel a strong presence of security on-campus. "I spend most of my time in the Swenson building in the research wing," said fifth-year student Nate Bruender. "To get back there, you have to go through an alarm door with this video camera, so for me, it's not much of a worry." Other students echoed Bruender's response and feel secure at UMD. "I feel like the campus is pretty close-knit and so I don't have to go outside a lot," said freshman Grace Johnson. "I feel pretty safe in that way because a lot of doors are locked—especially at night." Both Fox and Latto said that students can do their part by reporting any suspicious behavior to authorities. "Don't be nervous about calling 911," Fox said. "(Authorities) want that call if there is a reason that you think your safety is impaired." -- Original Source:The Statesman - April 26, 2007
Statesman Editor-in-Chief Desk - Suraj Rambhia <eic@sbstatesman.org>
John and Elizabeth Edwards Statement on Virginia Tech Shooting
Apr 16, 2007 We are simply heartbroken by the deaths and injuries suffered at Virginia Tech. We know what an unspeakable, life-changing moment this is for these families and how, in this moment, it is hard to feel anything but overwhelming grief, much less the love and support around you. But the love and support is there. We pray that these families, these students, and the entire Virginia Tech community know that they are being embraced by a nation. There is a Methodist hymn that gave us solace in such a moment as this, and we repeat its final verse here, in hopes it will help these families, as it helped us: In our end is our beginning; in our time, infinity; In our doubt there is believing, in our life, eternity, In our death, a resurrection; at the last, a victory, Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see. Our dearest wish is that this day could start again, with the promise of these young people alive. Knowing that cannot be, our prayer is for God's grace and whatever measure of peace can be reached on this terrible day. John and Elizabeth Edwards -- Original Source: http://johnedwards.com/news/headlines/200700416-vt/ Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0
John and Elizabeth Edwards / John Edwards for President
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0
By John Davisson PUBLISHED APRIL 16, 2007 Thirty-two dead and dozens more wounded in Blacksburg. A Journalism School student raped, cut, and burned in Hamilton Heights. These are the twin horrors—baffling, appalling, and without reason—that greeted Columbia's community on Monday. Sadistic acts are lamentable and far-too-common features of the human experience. Each successive day brings with it reports of gut-wrenching atrocities, many on a greater scale than these two attacks, most eliciting a quieter outcry. But our empathy and fear operate in analogues, so it gives us special pause when senseless brutality impacts those bound to us through shared educational experience, whether at Columbia or a peer institution. In these cases, we cannot help but ask why, how, and most alarmingly whether such incidents could recur, but the replies do little to diminish the widespread sense of confusion and grief. One wonders what train of thought led someone to butcher a room full of fellow human beings or brutalize a lone victim, but the causes seem to defy reason, and the savagery yields few good answers. Violence, author Jean Genet wrote, is a calm that disturbs you. In the coming days, much will be said about prevention: what could have been and should be done to forestall such acts of cruelty. This is a good and crucial discussion, but, sadly, one that cannot erase the pain inflicted on the victims and those close to them. Time may bring a degree of distance and comfort, but investigation will only supply the how—never the root causes, the why. We offer, as do all, our deepest condolences to those affected by these crimes, and we hope that the coming weeks will offer them some measure of healing. -- Original Source: Columbia Spectator http://www.columbiaspectator.com/node/24875
Audio Report from John Gravois of The Chronicle of Higher Education
A Tuesday, April 17 report from John Gravois, a reporter with The Chronicle of Higher education, on the mood on the campus the day after the shootings. This item is also available on the Chronicle's special "Shootings at Virginia Tech" coverage page: http://chronicle.com/indepth/vatech/
John Gravois / The Chronicle of Higher Education
Permission to add to public archive granted by The Chronicle on Tuesday, May 8.
May 4, 2007 By JOHN HENNESSY On April 16, 2007, our country suffered a terrible tragedy when a troubled student killed 32 members of the Virginia Tech community. Such tragedies are unfathomable. Words, as eloquent and sincere as they may be, fail to convey the shock and sadness we all felt upon hearing that news. At Stanford, I was struck by the deep and sincere evidence of sympathy and concern throughout campus, from the moments of silence at many meetings to the cards signed in dining halls to the moving ceremony at Memorial Church. Today, Stanford's condolences stand among those of more than 300 other colleges and universities on the Virginia Tech website. Ours is a caring community, and that fact was never so clear as it was on April 16 and the days immediately thereafter. Not surprisingly, I have been asked about emergency protocols here at Stanford. I want you to know that in the wake of the Virginia Tech tragedy, a group has been convened by Vice President Randy Livingston to review all of our emergency protocols, as well as our methods of communication. Stanford has had an emergency management program in place for many years. The emergency plan has evolved from one primarily focused on earthquake preparation and response and now includes an "all hazards" approach. We practice annually for all types of emergencies, including intentional acts. In addition, we have various methods available through which to communicate with the entire campus, but we are seeking to improve the speed and efficiency with which we can do so. Our emergency protocols are good, but the realities of today's society demand that they be even better. As important as they are, emergency protocols are unfortunately after-event procedures, and therefore only part of a necessary dialogue. As has been made very clear in the days following the tragedy at Virgina Tech, the challenge of how society addresses mental health issues is serious and complicated. We pray that what happened at Virginia Tech was a horrible aberration that will not be repeated anywhere. We know in retrospect that more must be done to recognize the warning signs of mental distress, including its potential for violence. We know we must learn more about how and when to intervene appropriately. The deaths at Virginia Tech are a tragedy of national proportions, but college campuses are experiencing smaller, quieter, yet profoundly distressing tragedies every day — young people who have chosen to take their own lives. The Stanford community has been no exception in this regard. Since the beginning of the academic year, we have lost several Stanford students. As we think through the maze of mental health challenges, we must also confront the problem of suicide — openly, constructively and with determination. For many, the imponderability of suicide may make us feel powerless to know where to begin in addressing such a painfully personal issue. So perhaps the place to start is in the recognition that we all do indeed have a role to play. A university is a deeply intimate community — what touches one, truly touches all. That means that as a community we have a set of responsibilities to each other. We have the responsibility to understand, to comfort, to reach out and, in some cases, to act. Mental and emotional distress know no bounds of gender, background or color. I am hopeful for a day when the stigma associated with depression and other mental health problems — whether imposed by others or one's self — dissipates and goes the way of other misplaced fears and biases. Helping each other overcome that stigma is an important first step. This stigma, which often results in a reluctance to seek help, implies an additional responsibility: We must share a commitment to be compassionate, to not turn away from seeing and acknowledging a difficult circumstance, and then take the opportunity to reach out to help — or even seek help ourselves. There are many resources available at Stanford, including Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) at Vaden Health Center, the Bridge Peer Counseling Center, the Office for Religious Life, the community centers and residence staff, among others. But these resources can only be brought to bear if they are engaged. Last fall, Provost John Etchemendy appointed a group to examine issues around the psychological well being of our students and assess the services we offer in this area. Other colleges and universities are taking similar measures in the face of an increasing demand for mental health and well being services. Some of you will be asked to participate in focus groups this spring or to take an online survey, and I hope you will choose to participate. It goes without saying that one suicide is too many, and we must look within ourselves to be certain that we are doing everything we can to prevent such tragedies. I have been gratified by the strength and compassion of students, faculty and staff in the last few weeks. I hope and believe we can build on that to create an even healthier, safer and more caring community. John Hennessy is the president of Stanford University. -- Original Source: Stanford Daily - May 4, 2007
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By John Hilliard/Daily News staff GHS Wed Apr 18, 2007, 12:07 AM EDT After Monday's Virginia Tech massacre, several area colleges and police departments expect to take a closer look at their plans to grapple with a future emergency. "It's safe to say over the next few days every college around the country will be reviewing their current (safety) procedures," said Peter Chisholm, spokesman for Framingham State College. "We will review what we have in place." Framingham and FSC police coordinate on training, he said. In an e-mail sent yesterday, FSC President Timothy Flanagan asked faculty, staff and students to report any suspicious activities and review the school's emergency response plan. During an interview, he said campus police and Framingham Police have a close working relationship, and campus security can call on the town police for support when needed. Flanagan met with campus leaders and security officials yesterday to discuss emergency plans following the shooting in Virginia. "We're not isolated, we're not cloistered" as a campus, said Flanagan. In Waltham, home to Brandeis University and Bentley College, police Detective Sgt. Timothy King expected to discuss emergency plans with both institutions. "I'm certain we will be talking to administrators for the schools," said King. He said city police are familiar with both campuses, but would not comment on any training the city and the two schools' campus security departments undertake. "That incident is on the same level as a terrorist event," for which police have trained, he said. "We do work closely with both (campus police) departments." Franklin Police Deputy Chief Stephen Semerjian said his department has a good working relationship with Dean College. The two institutions also have plans in place to ensure "communication is good and fluid," he said. In Weston, Regis College held a prayer vigil yesterday for the victims as a statement of "solidarity and community," said M.J. Doherty, a former professor and special assistant to the college president. She said the Catholic school is working on ways to address the needs of any isolated students and "bring that person out of isolation before they can get trapped on a tragic path," she said. According to published reports, the Virginia Tech shooter was student Cho Seung-Hui, who was described as an isolated loner by some law enforcement officials, and committed suicide after killing the 32 victims. Regis has a close relationship with Weston Police and does not arm its campus officers, said Doherty. Since 9/11, the school maintains its own disaster plans for emergencies. "Every workplace, every campus, every situation is vulnerable," said Doherty. (John Hilliard can be reached at 508-626-4449 or jhilliar@cnc.com.) -- Original Source: Framingham, MA - The MetroWest Daily News http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x1352188768 Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5.
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VT Massacre: Could it Happen at Hampden-Sydney???
Submitted by JohnMaxfield on Tue, 04/17/2007 - 7:30am. Would this have happened at a school like Hampden-Sydney? That is the question. And the answer must be dealt with delicately, in the aftermath of such a horrendous massacre that hopefully we will never see repeated in our history. But the fact remains--could this tragedy have been down scaled and at best, diffused, if students were allowed to possess firearms on school campuses? I noticed Cliff Garstang's blog going through the aggregator. He had a post up about the tragedy and I thought for once, that he might have a kind word to pass along to the families in mourning. Instead, it ended up being a diatribe about how guns are bad, guns are evil, conservatives are wrong and reactionary, I'm right and you all are wrong, etc. etc. He went on to say how conservatives are of the mindset that if perhaps either some of the students or faculty had been armed, then this might have stopped the shooter. Of course, he disagreed saying, "Put a gun in the hand of every college kid in the country? That's not only absurd, it's just crazy. Arming the citizenry will mean more gun-related deaths, intentional and otherwise, not fewer. The sane approach is to make sure that there are fewer guns. Not more." What? So here is where my question comes in? Do you think that this tragedy would have happened--better yet--do you think the students would have ALLOWED it to happen at Hampden-Sydney College? Of course not. Why, you ask? Because Hampden-Sydney promotes and allows the use of firearms on campus! Students sleep with shotguns under their beds! They hunt, fish, and target shoot on school property. The Admission Office houses a literal armory of firearms and weaponry under neath that building in their vaults. Statically, the college flaunts, enough firepower to defend the campus against a small country. In talking with a friend after the incident who goes to school there, he said that had discussed this exact issue. They figured that if a shooter dared tried to commit the same horrendous atrocities like at VPI, they wouldn't last but 10 minutes...alive. So is it absurd, Clifford? Is it a crazy notion? If you was that unidentified Asian...who would you be more likely to attack? A school who prides itself in the respect of the Second Amendment--or schools like VPI, UVA, or William and Mary--that have strict anti-gun polices on campus? Cliff said that, "Arming the citizenry will mean more gun-related deaths, intentional and otherwise, not fewer." Really? Well when was the last time of anyone hearing about those gun related incidents at schools that allow and promote gun usage on campus? Why do the 'incidents' only occur in school that have anti-gun policies? One can almost draw this parallel--why are the more violent crimes committed in cities like Washington, D.C. and in countries like Great Britain where firearm usage and most possession is illegal? Are we seeing a pattern here? And, sorry, just had to make this final comment, Cliff says that, "The sane approach is to make sure that there are fewer guns. Not more." So people at Hamden-Sydney are insane? Is that the point you are trying to make? And are the people in D.C. who make the gun control laws SANE? More on the tragedy: here, here, here, and here -- Original Source: http://www.progressiveu.org/103032-vt-massacre-could-it-happen-at-hampden-sydney Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0.
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The challenge of preventing violence is not just an American problem
Commentary John Monahan and Jeffrey Swanson Sunday April 22, 2007 The Observer One of the largest mass killings in American history was carried out last Monday at the hands of a 23-year-old university student with mental illness. The reverberations of the events that ended the lives of 32 students and faculty staff at Virginia Tech - and of the offender as well - are shaking the already wobbly mental health system. This American tragedy surely holds lessons for the UK as it considers the revision of its Mental Health Bill. The scientific challenges of predicting violence, and the legal challenges of preventing it, transcend national borders. Both UK and US look first to mental health professionals. But how good are psychiatrists and psychologists at distinguishing which people with a mental illness will be violent? Research shows professionals are better than pure chance, but not much. Predicting harmful behaviour is like predicting bad weather. An inaccurate prediction doesn't necessarily mean the clinician or the meteorologist has 'missed something'; it may just mean the science of forecasting has a long way to go. Tools to aid mental health professionals in the task focus on proven risk factors: characteristics that define the person (e.g. young, male); disorders that a person has (e.g. a major mental illness, a personality disorder, and alcohol or drug abuse); what the person has done (e.g. past violence); and what has been done to the person (e.g. being raised by violent or substance abusing parents, and being physically abused as a child). These risk factors can distinguish patients with a low risk of future violence from patients with a high one. What can be done to preclude anticipated violence? If people need treatment, don't want it, and might do something harmful if they don't get it, can the state override their right to refuse? The law of civil commitment - being hospitalised against one's will - in almost every US state focuses on two things: whether the person is seriously mentally ill and whether they are likely to be imminently violent to self or others. Many states have recently struck the word 'imminently' from their statutes as being too restrictive. There are many state laws authorising 'outpatient commitment', or in Britain 'community treatment orders', requiring certain people to get treatment in the community rather than, or in addition to, in a hospital. Cho himself had received a judicial order in December 2005 to 'follow all recommended treatment'. In Virginia, however, such an order is effectively unenforceable. Civil libertarians see these laws as an Orwellian intrusion on the freedom of people with mental illness, most of whom will never be violent, to make their own decisions about treatment. But family members often argue that their relatives are so sick they don't realise they're ill and won't accept treatment voluntarily, or will stop taking their medication or therapy when they feel better. They argue that some people have to be required by law to accept outpatient treatment, or they won't get any treatment at all, sometimes with catastrophic effect. In Cho's case, opponents will argue that the outcome proves a judicial order to community-based treatment cannot prevent murder and mayhem; proponents will say that these statutes need more 'teeth'. But this controversy raises the question of whether the policy actually works: can legally enforced outpatient treatment prevent violence? Evidence is mixed. However, one study found that if people with mental illness were on a community treatment order for at least six months, they were much less likely to be violent than people who were not on outpatient commitment or on it only briefly. As the science of violence risk assessment improves, and clinical interventions to reduce that risk become demonstrably effective, there will be no avoiding trade-offs among cherished Anglo-American values of autonomy, social responsibility, privacy, and security. Our advice is to beware all those who find these trade-offs easy. In the process of defining the rights and responsibilities of those among us with mental illness, we define ourselves. John Monahan is a psychologist and University of Virginia professor. Jeffrey Swanson is a sociologist and associate professor at the Duke University School of Medicine. On Guardian Unlimited Full coverage of the Virginia Tech shootings Gun violence in the US Gun violence in Britain Full US coverage Related articles Virginia massacre gunman named Unofficial list of shooting victims emerges Massacre on campus Q&A: US gun laws World news guide North American Media Media CNN New York Times Washington Post Government Virginia state government portal US government portal White House Senate House of Representatives Copyright Guardian News & Media Ltd 2007. -- Original Source:http://www.guardian.co.uk/usguns/Story/0,,2062866,00.html
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Mass for Virginia Tech provides consolation, hope
Students, community members fill Basilica John Tierney Issue date: 4/18/07 Section: News Only a week after Easter, the Notre Dame community once again "finds [itself] at the foot of the Cross," said Father Pete McCormick during his homily at a memorial Mass for the Virginia Tech community Tuesday night at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. "We always have the Cross in our life, but we do not grieve without hope," said McCormick, the assistant rector of Dillon Hall, who was just ordained on Saturday. The Mass, presided over by Vice President for Student Affairs Father Mark Poorman, was organized Monday after news of the 33-person massacre at Virginia Tech broke. Students were informed of the Mass by an urgent IrishLink email from Poorman late Monday. The Basilica was packed to a standing room only capacity, with the entire rear lobby of the church completely full. The Mass drew more people than last fall's 9/11 five-year anniversary Mass. The congregation was made up largely of students, although many members of the outside community were also present. Some students came straight from the library, carrying their backpacks, while many dressed nicely for the service. Following the Mass, many students visited the Grotto to pray and reflect on the massacre. In his homily, McCormick emphasized the powerful emotions many Americans have felt in the past few days in response to the tragedy at Virginia Tech. "We have been overwhelmed with thoughts and emotions. [...] We are shocked, we are fearful, and we are angered," he said. McCormick also underlined the similarities between the Notre Dame and Virginia Tech communities. "We've heard the stories of students, staff and professors who died, and we realized that their goals and ambitions are not that different from our own," he said. Because of these similarities, McCormick said he believes the Notre Dame and Virginia Tech communities are "of one thought and mind." Like those at Virginia Tech's candlelight vigil Tuesday night, the members of the Notre Dame community worshiping at the Basilica and praying at the Grotto "gathered to pray for the lost souls and for peace in their hearts, and in our own," he said. The Mass was meant to represent the concern for the spiritual unity of all humankind. "When one part of the human community suffers, we all suffer," McCormick said. McCormick said he believes members of the Notre Dame community can take strength in the Holy Spirit after Monday's tragedy, which was the largest mass shooting in U.S. history. "The Holy Spirit allows us to move from a state of fear to faith," McCormick said. "We may be fearful, but it is faith, not fear, that transforms and heals our wounds." While Monday's events were undoubtedly tragic, McCormick stressed the ability to overcome disaster and increase spiritual strength. "It is only for us now to find how even the Cross can be borne as a gift," he said to close his homily. The message of the Mass was not one of depression, but a more hopeful state of solidarity with fellow humans. "We must be a community with hope to bring. There is no failure that the Lord cannot reverse," McCormick said. -- Original Source: http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/18/News/Mass-For.Virginia.Tech.Provides.Consolation.Hope-2849116.shtml http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2007/04/18/News/Mass-For.Virginia.Tech.Provides.Consolation.Hope-2849116-page2.shtml
Students ask question, "Could it happen here?" John Tierney Issue date: 2/15/08 Section: News Notre Dame students expressed sadness and shock Thursday night at yesterday's shooting at Northern Illinois. The tragedy, in which at least six people, including the gunman, were killed and 17 were injured, occurred in a lecture hall less than three hours away from Notre Dame's campus. Although this generation of Notre Dame students has grown up with school shootings ranging from Columbine in 1999 to Virginia Tech last year, students haven't become immune to the tragedy of school massacres. "It was very tragic and scary. You have to wonder what's going on with those kids. It makes you wonder if something like that could happen at Notre Dame," sophomore Tim Nelson said. Many students had not heard of the shooting by Thursday evening, including a group of seniors who stood speechless after being informed of the news. Student body president Liz Brown noted that school shootings are becoming more common. "Unfortunately, this is kind of becoming an occurrence on college campuses across the nation. Hopefully, this trend will stop," she said. Brown also expressed a sense of grief at the NIU tragedy. "This is a hard thing to react to," she said. "This sort of thing has become all too common at schools in the United States." Senior Meghan Jebb, who was studying in Dublin at the time of the Virginia Tech tragedy, questioned the universality of school shootings. "I don't know if this kind of thing happens in other countries. After the Va. Tech shootings, the kids in Ireland were like, 'why do they have guns?'" she asked. Colleen Fleshman, who is from Illinois, said that her first reaction after hearing the news was to call her friends who attend NIU to make sure of their safety. She said she was relieved to find that all her friends were alright. Although the shooter's motivations are not yet known, some students have wondered about the timing of his attack. "He probably picked Valentine's Day for a reason," junior Ryan Simmons said. Sophomore Kyle Hagelskamp agreed. "It's too bad that people don't feel the love and support of the world and resort to doing something like this," he said. "We need to work on providing a loving and supportive environment to try to prevent this sort of tragedy." Brown stressed that while she obviously hopes that no similar situation would happen at Notre Dame, the University has precautions in place designed to manage a tragedy. "Certainly we hope it would never happen at Notre Dame," she said. "We think our campus is very safe. But if it were to ever happen, I'm thankful that we do have the correct measures in place to adequately inform the student body and react quickly." These measures include the Emergency Networking System that will alert students to any emergency situations through text messages, phone calls and emails. These emergency situations include shootings. -- Original Source: http://media.www.ndsmcobserver.com/media/storage/paper660/news/2008/02/15/News/Nd.Upset.By.Niu.Shooting-3213406.shtml