For those who have not heard, a message found last Friday in a residence hall men's bathroom at Hocking College threatened to kill Black students Feb. 2. Because of the violent death threats made toward Black students so close to our home away from home, students at Ohio University are feeling threatened as well. Hocking is only 20 minutes away.
Security is being bolstered there, but it seems our university has played the threat off as a simple act of offensive graffiti. As much as I believe Dean of Students Ryan Lombardi cares about the welfare of the student body, the e-mail he sent regarding the incident lacks specificity or urgency and delayed how students affected by the threats were to learn about the terrorism plot brewing 14 miles down Route 33. The FBI is investigating the threat as a hate crime, so the offense of the university in omitting detailed information about the possible act of terrorism is a warning in itself.
The Ohio University campus crime alert has posted nothing about the incident, either. It is understood that campus crime is the focus, but an FBI investigation concerning students' lives in the area seems like a candidate for a line or two.
I do not plan to be visible on the day of Feb. 2. I encourage other Black students to do the same. E-mail your professors and explain your concern for safety. Stay in your residence. The best defensive is a good offense! For if there were a public warning of the events of Sept. 11, 2001 days before the attack, would one call off work? For those who were not targeted, I know you are reading and believing this letter is ludicrous. Consider your sense of security a luxury.
But WE must protect ourselves.
Sydney Epps is a junior studying journalism and sociology, and she is community service chair of Hip Hop Congress.
4 Opinion
Letter to the Editor
