WE CAN fill these columns with accounts of recentviolent attacks in the Charlottesville area -- yet, I choose to express faith in the non-violent nature of this community. University students are articulating concern throughout Grounds after the unfortunate incident at Sigma Chi, the stabbing and the still looming serial rapist. Patricia Lampkin, Vice President for Student Affairs stated in a letter to University students and parents, "Although nothing firmly indicates that physical violence is increasing among U.Va. students, anecdotal information and the prevalence of societal violence suggest this is an area we need to address." Yet, as a community based on trust, we as students should reject the latter of Lampkin's statement. We must affirm that the violent acts in Charlottesville this semester are not a representation of the University as a whole.
Students express fear in statements like "I am going to carry a knife with me out tonight." This fear, instead of helping the situation, actually propagates more crimes. With students immersed in a culture of fear, meaningless disturbances turn into violent, criminal confrontations.
The close timing of the recent violent incidents only adds to students' fears. Looking at the bigger picture of the stabbing incident, however, we find this is the first University student charged with murder since 1985 and the first homicide of the year in Charlottesville. This violence is not a recurring theme in Charlottesville. Lampkin said her office has not received a rise in reports of violence and assaults, although the aggressiveness of the crimes has escalated.
The isolated actions of a few students should not jeopardize our relations with the town by presenting a violent, drunken nature of college students. As USAToday.com reported, Charlottesville ranked among the top ten of student-friendly metropolitan areas in college towns with populations less than one million this year ("How the college towns stack up," Aug. 27).
Students who adhere to this culture of fear are, in fact, threatening the principles the University prides itself on -- trust and honor. The honor code creates this community of trust not only at the University, but in the Charlottesville area as well. By expressing fear and not trusting this community, students are endangering the entire honor system. One of the most attractive assets of the University is the honor code and students' trust for each other -- if prospective students or onlookers sense fear and restraint, they will deem the honor system a complete hoax.
We all should trust the students at the University and their integrity. Not every student needs to carry a knife or walk in large groups. The most unique and historic characteristic of the University is at stake. To threaten honor and trust is to take away our prestige as a principled and moral student population.
Do not move to this culture of fear in light of these isolated violent acts. The majority of students still are unafraid to place a laptop unattended at the library or to leave their doors unlocked. Charlottesville is still one of the safest places to live in the country. In Morgan Quitno Press's 8th Annual Safest Metro Award, Charlottesville placed in the top 80 cities across the nation. Although Charlottesville residents do not abide by the honor code, the Jeffersonian traditions definitely influence this community.
However, these violent and unfortunate acts should not be discredited as minor disturbances in the Charlottesville community. The University has dealt with these instances with support for the victims and quick disciplinary actions against the offenders. Yet, to suggest a "societal violence" exists completely exaggerates the current state of hostility in Charlottesville. Every University student signed a pledge stating he will adhere to our ethics and standards not only in class, but in the Charlottesville community. Most students abide by this creed and have no intention to kill or harm a student. The acts of a few students do not represent the University student population and should not tarnish our reputation within the town of Charlottesville.
If we are truly a community of trust, our bonds and standards should overcome the tragedies of a few isolated violent acts. This is not an area the administration "needs to address" -- instead, students should face the current situation without fear. Have trust in the honor system and the general goodness of our peers. We are not violent people, we have one of the most effective honor codes in the nation and we live in one of the safest college towns in the country -- no person can consciously claim our Charlottesville community is one to be feared.
(Michael Behr's column appears Wednesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at mbehr@cavalierdaily.com.)
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