The U.S. has seen many incidents of gun violence and assault in recent years, especially in places of education and worship.
On Oct. 27, a man opened fire in a synagogue in Pittsburgh in an anti-semitic attack. This has come with many racial commentary and attacks on people and students around the country.
Winthrop responded to these attacks and racist views with a moment of silence in front of Owens hall on Oct. 30 and an invitation to all students, faculty and staff to pray and show the community how they are celebrating diversity and inclusivity.
Ximena Perez-Velazco, a senior human nutrition major, is the president of the Council of Student Leaders. She said that these events are happening everywhere in the country and that now Winthrop students are having to deal with all of the effects racism and bigotry at home.
She said that although there may be extreme cases of racial discrimination and violence across the U.S., Winthrop does a good job of including and diversifying their student body and faculty.
“These events, unfortunately, stem from a place of darkness and bigotry and that is something I consider myself very lucky to not have to know here,” Perez-Velazco said.
Quest Morris is a sophomore elementary education major who said that he came to the event to show his support and that he feels he has to show other students that they are not alone.
“Standing in solidarity and making sure our students know that we’re here for them in this time of tragedy and I know that we had a lot of students who have been affected by this so I feel like this was only necessary,” Quest Morrison
Perez-Velazco said that Winthrop offers many safe zones and places for students to recover and heal from events like this.
“Our Alma Mater says ‘Together We Stand’ and we are a family here. I wouldn’t work in the position I do if we weren’t and if for any reason anyone feels as if they didn’t have the opportunity to come today or they don’t have a resource, know that it is there and we do have faculty and staff on campus that specifically identify with these issues,” Perez-Velazco said.
President Daniel Mahony said that this event helped students organize their thoughts and concerns together into something that helped benefit the entire campus and showed everyone that Winthrop is a place of acceptance and inclusion.
“I think that one of the things we want to do is to create a welcoming committee and this certainly helps with that. That’s one of the things students look for when they go to college where they feel a part of something and feel a part of a family,” Mahony said.
Mahony said that students should seek help from campus resources. He said that the faculty and staff are here to support you through times like this and that more people should take advantage of that.
“People are here to listen, people are here to support you. I mean not just the students, we have counselors, others and if you feel the need to seek help, you should,” Mahony said.
Jared T. Garrett, a senior sport management major, is the vice president of the Council of Student Leaders. He said that this event was put on in the hopes of bringing together students and faculty to ensure that they feel safe and welcomed at Winthrop.
“We want everyone to feel comfortable and with these events that happened throughout this past week, we just want to let you guys know that Winthrop is a place where everyone is comfortable and everyone is your family,” Garrett said.
Perez-Velazco and Garrett welcomed anyone struggling with acceptance or people who feel they have been discriminating against or affected by the events in these past few weeks to contact the CSL.
“If there’s anything we can do to offer you comfort or console please feel free to contact us at anytime,” Perez-Velazco said.
