An open letter to terrorists and gunmen everywhere,
We don’t know who you are. In fact, we will never know who you are. You are different each and every day. We live through the massacre at Columbine High School and we think we know the type of person you are. But then a different type of person sends us through hell at Virginia Tech. And even still, you remain unidentified. The shooter at Strozier Library at Florida State University at 12:30 AM on November 20, 2014 was different. Yes, after examination, he was apparently as mentally incompetent as anyone who has held a gun to innocent people, but he was different. I’d like to think so, anyway. He was our very own alum. A fellow Seminole.
But it doesn’t matter. Everything that could have made me look at him, or you, in a compassionate way was shot to hell and back, literally. People defend you. They say you were just mentally unstable. They say you just needed help. I’m sorry, I can’t accept that.
When you make the choice to attack me and my peers, I will get angry. I will go to the ends of the earth to ensure that not only are my friends okay, but to ensure you are brought to the justice you deserve. The strozier shooter? He got what he deserved when he fell in a crumpled mass in front of the building, riddled with bullet holes, courtesy of the brave men and women of the FSU Police Department.
You will never go away, though, will you? No matter what gun laws are enacted, you’ll get your gun. You’re a criminal; a low life piece of scum. You won’t listen to laws. You buy your guns from someone’s trunk of their 1980 sedan and go on to wreak havoc throughout our nation and our world. But every time you do, we get stronger. Today, I looked into the eyes of my peers, and I saw worry. But I also saw resilience. I saw courage. I saw compassion. I fought back tears at the entire vigil because I knew that no matter what happens, I will always have 40,000 peers that have my back.
I don’t know what you want. We will never know your goals. Do you want to take away our peace of mind? Do you want to make us suffer the way you did if you were bullied as a child? It doesn’t matter. If you keep coming at us, we will come back at you. We don’t give up. We are Seminoles, we are strong.
You may take away our peace of mind. You may drive fear into us. But you will never take away the compassion we have for one another. Universities from across the nation supported us as well. You will never take away the love that we have for one another.
The Students of Florida State University
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