Last weekend, I travelled to Wellington with my flatmate to visit her family. It was great to have the opportunity to stay in a family home for a few days after being away from home for months. We went to markets, visited museums, and woke up early to watch the rugby world cup and cheer on the All Blacks. When I was talking to her parents, they asked me the usual questions: where are you from, what do you study, how did you wind up in New Zealand? By this point in the semester I have my casual introduction basically set to autopilot.
Her father also asked me some questions about America and pop culture. I tried to avoid having to make serious comments on Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy. But one thing he asked really struck me: "How safe is your campus?"
I usually think of the threats of sexual assault or alcohol when thinking about campus safety and security. But the question was in direct reference to the horrific gun violence that continues to occur on American college campuses. Last Thursday’s shooting at Umpqua Community College had already made its rounds in New Zealand news coverage, partially because a kiwi student is attending the college on scholarship and was nearby when the shooting took place. But this most recent tragedy is far from the first, and even in the week that has passed two more incidents of gun violence have occurred on two more US campuses.
I’m so sick of the hurt that our country feels after each successive horror, and even more sick of the way that it feels less like déjà vu and more like the norm, or even something that we can expect. Every few months we go through the motions of reacting to the latest tragedy, and it always feels like nothing really changes.
But hearing my roommate’s dad ask me if I need to pass through metal detectors on my way onto campus back home taught me that in fact, some things have changed: these school shootings are now a trope that other countries see America in reference to. Perception of the United States as a nation now includes the supposed lurking threat of gun violence on its campuses. I’ve always felt safe at Georgetown, but to foreigners who continually hear about the violence and mass shootings associated with US schools, this notion of safety requires questioning.
A few days after the Oregon shooting, a copycat threat was posted online for the Dunedin, New Zealand University of Otago. Thankfully, nothing happened—although authorities were present on campus throughout the week and are still working to uncover the identity of the anonymous poster. The author of the now-deleted post referenced the Virginia Tech shooter as one of his personal heroes.
The rest of the world has taken notice of these happenings in America. I want to be able to say that our schools are safe—that mass shootings really aren’t such a common happening. But, especially compared to the rest of the world, this just isn’t true. The rates of gun violence in the United States are staggering. It's no wonder New Zealand parents are interested in my take on campus security.
Marilyn Arwood graduated from Georgetown College in 2017 with majors in economics and women's and gender studies. Marilyn spent the fall 2015 semester living in New Zealand and studied at the University of Auckland; she also blogged for the Junior Year Abroad Network.
