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Virginia Tech still jittery
15/04/2008 14:49 - (SA)
Washington - It doesn't take much for Amie Steele to notice that everyday life on campus has changed since a deranged gunman stormed into classrooms one year ago in the deadliest shooting rampage in US history.
Showing up late for class will get the attention of jittery students, who turn their heads wondering why the door has opened, while others tend to sit away from the entrance to avoid being the next gunman's first victim, said Steele, a 22-year-old senior.
"They sit in certain places in classrooms," Steele said. "They sit away from the door because most of the people killed last year were near the doorway."
Wednesday marks the first anniversary since Cho Seung-Hui, a 23- year-old student with a history of mental problems, showed up at Virginia Tech University on that April morning and shot 32 students and faculty members to death before turning a gun on himself.
Getting closure
The university in Blacksburg, Virginia, will hold ceremonies on Wednesday to remember the victims of the shooting, which grabbed worldwide attention and rekindled debate about US gun laws.
Steele, chief editor of the student newspaper, said by telephone that many students are eager to get past the anniversary so that they can get some closure to the killings, which left the campus and surrounding community devastated.
"Then, we will be done with all the firsts," Steele said. "We had the first graduation. We had the first football game. After the first anniversary, everything is sort of done."
As the Virginia Tech community moves on from the tragedy, the politics of gun control continue to rage. Pro- and anti-gun control groups have used the shooting spree to firm up their positions.
ProtestEasyGuns.com, which was founded after the massacre, has planned lay-ins in all 50 states to represent the victims of the attack. They want legislation that would ban people from selling handguns at gun shows.
Carrying guns on campus
The killings prompted the formation of a group on campus that advocates allowing students to carry concealed handguns to defend themselves.
"When you have 10 minutes to stop someone and you can't, it's obvious that you need something bigger and better in a situation like that," said Kenneth Stanton, president of the Virginia Tech Students for Concealed Carry on Campus.
Stanton was referring to the length of Cho's second shooting spree, when he killed 30 people after shooting two in a dormitory room two hours earlier. Stanton, a 30-year-old doctoral degree student, said by telephone that college campuses are the only place in the United States where licensed individuals cannot carry a hidden weapon.
"Not being armed can cost you your life in some situations," he said.
Steele, the newspaper editor, said there is some support among students for Stanton's position, but a large majority opposes allowing people to carry weapons on university grounds.
"There is a much larger majority of students who do not wish to carry guns on campus," she said.
Scars
The students plan to put aside the political issue when they gather on Wednesday to remember their friends. Stanton, whose friend Jeremy Herbstritt died in the shooting, said that he instructed his group to remain silent on the gun issue during the one-year commemorations.
The massacre has not diminished enthusiasm for attending the university of about 25 000. Larry Hincker, the university spokesman, said that admission applications increased by six percent this year.
As the school marks the anniversary, Hincker said that campus visitors are often surprised when they see that life appears to be normal on campus as students go about their business and enjoy their college lives.
But there are scars.
The university, which has a military cadet programme, has a memorial for former students who have died in US military service. Last week, cadets inscribed the names of a former student killed in Iraq and another who died in an aircraft incident. The ceremony included the traditional gun firing salute.
"That set a few people on edge," Hincker said by telephone. "We expect things like that to happen."
Sapa-dpa
- SAPA
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