Administration & Media failed to properly address campus assaults

Published in The Catalyst 

When coming to an understanding of the brutal assaults against CC students towards the end of first semester, it is important not to think of as only a campus issue, but an issue in the city of Colorado Springs. This is something the local media and the school’s administration failed to do. 

Whether it was KKTV’s dramatic television coverage of the attacks or e-mails sent by the college, little is being said about the role of the crime spike underway in the city. With nearly triple the amount of reported assaults having taken place in 2010 than in all of 2009, it is clear the problem we are facing is not to be mishandled as a campus-only concern.  “I think a-lot of people in the city are scared”, said sophomore Noah Gallo-Brown “I sense we were not alone in our fears of attackers” he added.

According to a report conducted by the FBI on crime in the United States, El Paso County was #1 in the state of Colorado for violent crime last year. Furthermore, Colorado Springs, which makes up nearly 70% of El Paso’s population, was ranked #1 for forcible rape in the state with the 11^th highest rate in the country.

Campus Security is continuing to inform campus appropriately, and police sketches of the attackers were wisely released to all students midway through 4^th block. Although spreading fear can cause irrational discomfort for those walking around campus, students have a right to know what is going on in the city. The Springs has a burglary, arson, property crime, and theft rate all higher than the national average.

Part of the administration’s rationale is that informing people on what is going on in the city as a whole will only give them more to fear. Isn’t it enough to fear living on campus, much less fearing living in the city of Colorado Springs? The problem with that argument is it leaves victims feeling targeted and others feeling venerable on campus, when CC students are, by far and large, not the target of citywide assaults. The vast majority of violent crime has occurred far from CC and its surroundings. Thus, its important to understand that when assaults on campus occur, an appropriate response would be to encourage law enforcement to better deal with violent crime citywide so attacks don’t leak onto campus. An even better response, freshman Joel Begay argues would be to “address poverty with better citywide programs” as “it is proven that the impoverished are less likely to commit crime if they see a way out of their economic disadvantages”.

As for the media, KKTV’s detailed and expansive coverage of the assaults included an article that posted the address of Tutt Library but did not once mention the crime spike visible across Colorado Springs. Furthermore, the article quotes a sophomore who chooses to pretend she’s on her cell phone whenever she is on campus late at night. This tactic, although common, has been proven ineffective in study after study. In fact, criminals are so much more likely to attack people on their phones that police departments in cities like Baltimore and New York have sent out advisories informing citizens that this puts them in danger. “It’s important that you walk fast and do your best to pick up on signs of a lurking criminal,” said sophomore Sara Bodner. Freshman Alyssa Northam, whose father is in the El Paso Country Sheriff’s Department,  argued that “KKTV’s presentation of the argument to talk on your phone as a legitimate one exemplifies their poor, lazy coverage of the assaults,” adding “They interviewed a cop for the article. They should have taken safety advice from him, not from students”. Alyssa is on point. Instead of KKTV promoting the situation as one to be taken seriously by law enforcement and those across the city, they made it an exclusively campus issue and worsened this situation by promoting failed tactics to thwart criminals. 

As for the victims, I acknowledge that I did not reach out to them. I imagine these students would rather put the events behind them than complain about crime citywide. But, it is important that we take steps to do whatever possible to reduce crime on campus. And that means reducing it in the city. That also means being well prepared for encountering assaults. For now, it is for students to hope that crime does not make a return to CC but always stay street smart. “It’s very important that people travel in packs and are constantly aware of their surroundings,” said art major Denali Gillaspie. “Safety first!”

“I think safety and self defense classes could do the student body well, ” said freshman Brittany Soto. Now that’s an idea! It’s hard to imagine their would be much opposition to that one.