Crimes occurring near campus has students considering solutions.
By Kamryn Jackson
Between deadly shootings at apartments close to campus, and suspicious men driving around campus with loads of ammunition, plenty of N.C. A&T students do not feel safe.
According to The A&T Register, there have been 18 homicides in Greensboro through early April, with three of those being N.C. A&T students. Although none of these killings have happened on campus, the close proximity to campus still has students fearing for their safety.
“I can’t go to parties or have an enjoyable college experience without fearing for my life,” said Lauren Carter, an N.C. A&T sophomore from Charlotte. “It makes me feel eerie to know that most of these incidents happen near campus. It is honestly hard to sleep at night.”
Freshman, Deja Reaves, is the most recent Aggie to die from gun violence during an April 4 shooting at The Cottages housing complex. After Reaves’ death, A&T Chancellor Harold L. Martin held a forum to discuss campus safety, where he said the university would pay more attention to areas close to campus that are outside of the university’s jurisdiction.
“Cottages of Greensboro is not in our jurisdiction,” Martin said. “Nonetheless, we have been speaking with the Greensboro Police Department and Cottages management regarding their security measures and will be enhancing presence in that area.”
N.C. A&T students are no strangers to problem-solving, and several students have ideas about what can be done to ease the minds of fellow students and ultimately provide a less dangerous college experience.
“I got one word for you, PROTEST,” said Michael Green, an N.C. A&T senior from Baltimore. “It is way too easy to obtain a gun in Greensboro. Students need to make noise. We must let the university, the city of Greensboro and law enforcement feel how unhappy we are. If we apply pressure, we will see change.”
Historically, protesting has had success as a form of implementing change. The most recent example is when every state in the U.S. protested that former police officer Derrick Chauvin should be charged with murder for killing George Floyd in 2020. The pressure protesters put on law officials led to a trial, which resulted in Chauvin being sentenced to just over 20 years in prison.
A more niche example of protesting having success, is the Blackburn takeover that happened at a fellow HBCU, Howard University. Students slept outside and stayed at an on-campus cafe to protest against the adverse living conditions and demanded a meeting with the board of trustees, which was eventually granted.
Another reason N.C. A&T students do not feel safe is because the university is considered an ‘open campus.’ Recently, white nationalists came to N.C. A&T to spread their religious beliefs, spewing rhetoric such as “God hates you all.”
Students understand that university officials cannot control the fact that N.C. A&T is an open campus, but they still believe that the university can take action to make the campus less accessible.
“Look at technology nowadays,” said Jaliya Mitchells, a junior from Winston-Salem. “You can’t tell me the university can’t implement some type of technology to help regulate who comes on our campus.”
The university uses a swipe system to enter housing dorms and the library. Implementing some sort of swipe or scan and entry points on campus might limit the number of people wandering around, causing problems.
“I shouldn’t have to fear (for) my safety from locals on our campus,” Mitchells said.
Kamryn Jackson is a junior multimedia journalism major at N.C. A&T from Bowie, Maryland
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