Spring Break
Violence should not follow victory
Issue date: 10/16/03 Section: Editorial/Opinion
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10/16/03 - Tonight the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees will play to determine who will face the Florida Marlins in the World Series. This is a very exciting time for fans of both teams and we as a student body must ensure that the game does not result in violence.
No one can deny the importance of the game or the emotional significance to fans, but with the tension already built by the series, the size of the student body and the anxiety of police and university officials trying to protect students, there is potential for a very dangerous situation.
It is usually a small group of people that incite riots, and a large number of spectators enable that small group to create an atmosphere of violence. If a small group begins lighting dumpsters on fire do not stand and watch them. This will make it easier for the police and fire personnel to handle the situation, and ensure the safety of students on campus.
This does not mean that students should not be able to celebrate. The university must be careful, as they have in the past, to distinguish between a potentially dangerous riot and a celebration. The police forces must not overreact and take action on any student gathering; but last week the student body gave up most of the leeway it was allowed.
The key to all of this is the ability of students on campus to take responsibility for themselves and show some self-control. The university cannot force students to act like adults and police cannot force students to act responsibly. This is our university for four or more years of our lives, and many administrators have worked hard to provide us with the opportunities we have, so it would be ridiculous to throw that away if our team won or lost a baseball game. After all, no one would light their own house on fire or destroy their neighbor's house after a Red Sox victory, so why would anyone do the same at URI?
There are obviously underlying reasons for what happened last week, many of which need to be explored by the university and have nothing to do with baseball, but the student body cannot react violently and put our friends and colleagues in jeopardy. This is our school; let's take it upon ourselves not to ruin it over baseball or anything else. There are many worst-case scenario situations that could result from another riot and we must do everything we can to act responsibly and avoid these scenarios at all costs.
No one can deny the importance of the game or the emotional significance to fans, but with the tension already built by the series, the size of the student body and the anxiety of police and university officials trying to protect students, there is potential for a very dangerous situation.
It is usually a small group of people that incite riots, and a large number of spectators enable that small group to create an atmosphere of violence. If a small group begins lighting dumpsters on fire do not stand and watch them. This will make it easier for the police and fire personnel to handle the situation, and ensure the safety of students on campus.
This does not mean that students should not be able to celebrate. The university must be careful, as they have in the past, to distinguish between a potentially dangerous riot and a celebration. The police forces must not overreact and take action on any student gathering; but last week the student body gave up most of the leeway it was allowed.
The key to all of this is the ability of students on campus to take responsibility for themselves and show some self-control. The university cannot force students to act like adults and police cannot force students to act responsibly. This is our university for four or more years of our lives, and many administrators have worked hard to provide us with the opportunities we have, so it would be ridiculous to throw that away if our team won or lost a baseball game. After all, no one would light their own house on fire or destroy their neighbor's house after a Red Sox victory, so why would anyone do the same at URI?
There are obviously underlying reasons for what happened last week, many of which need to be explored by the university and have nothing to do with baseball, but the student body cannot react violently and put our friends and colleagues in jeopardy. This is our school; let's take it upon ourselves not to ruin it over baseball or anything else. There are many worst-case scenario situations that could result from another riot and we must do everything we can to act responsibly and avoid these scenarios at all costs.
