Tufts, too, must contend with nation of guns

Last Thursday, Americans faced a disturbingly familiar news report: there had been another shooting, this time at a college in Oregon. A white man, potentially driven by hatred, nihilism or a desire to see his name in lights, was able to acquire 13 guns legally, according to NBC. President Barack Obama seemed at a loss to explain why we as a country have failed over and over to respond to mass shootings and to the unwillingness of policymakers to do anything about the ease with which Americans can acquire guns. “This is becoming routine,” he said. Once again, a college campus was the setting for the harrowing work of an active shooter, and 10 young people died.

As students on a campus not dissimilar from the one on which tragedy took place in Oregon, it's crucial to be well-informed about what to do in case of an active shooter situation. The freedom of movement in and out of academic buildings, as well as a general openness to the surrounding community, are incredibly valuable aspects of life at Tufts, but that access makes emergency action plans for everyone -- students, faculty and staff -- all the more important.

Tufts has already put a lot of work into its emergency management system. Over the summer, the university sent out a shelter in place warning after the stabbing at the Delta Tau Delta fraternity, which was an effective means of disseminating necessary instructions quickly. This communication infrastructure, as well as emergency preparedness strategies like Operation Spartan Shield -- which is shared across the police departments that pertain directly to Tufts and which accounts for active shooter scenarios -- are comforting attributes of our public safety program. However, a greater student awareness of those systems, and how to allow them to work most effectively, would be hugely beneficial.

The unfortunate need to prepare for gun violence extends beyond college campuses as well. Tufts students should seriously consider joining up with organizations like Everytown for Gun Safety, or supporting candidates who make gun control laws central parts of their agendas. Students can also pressure their colleges to support movements for stricter gun control financially, recognizing the potential to effect political change that colleges in the United States have historically enjoyed. One need not look further than the campus activism that facilitated political change on South African apartheid or the work at some colleges today toward applying pressure to private prisons to see the social change that can emanate from student action.

It’s hard to contend with the idea that we have to live this way, worrying about someone coming on campus to hurt people. Yet we have to believe that something about the way the country reacts to these shootings can change, because it must.