The recent shooting at Florida State University has sparked discussion across the country about mass shootings in America and why action needs to be taken to prevent future tragedies.
The Incident
On April. 17, a gunman opened fire at the FSU student union, killing two people and injuring six. Five of the wounded individuals have since been discharged from the hospital and it is presumed that the sixth is the shooter.
The two victims who were killed are Tiru Chabba, 45-year-old father of two, and Robert Morales, a 57-year-old longtime employee of the university. Chabba lived in Greenville, S.C. and was on campus as an employee of a campus vendor.
According to the New York Times, Kyle Clark, senior vice president for finance and administration, spoke at a vigil about how Morales worked with chefs to ensure students with allergies had safe and healthy meals.
The suspect is a 20-year-old FSU student, Phoenix Ikner. He was shot in the jaw by campus police and remained hospitalized as of Thursday morning. Tallahassee police said he is expected to survive and that they will release more information once Ikner is released from the hospital and formally charged.
Ikner is the stepson of a Leon County sheriff’s deputy and authorities said that the alleged shooter used his stepmother’s former service weapon.
The Community’s Response
USA Today highlighted the stories of FSU students who also survived the shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018.
Stephanie Horowitz, a master’s student at FSU, was teaching a bowling class when some of her students saw people running. Horowitz saw personal belongings like laptops left behind and guessed there was an active-shooter situation based on her experience at Parkland.
“I never thought it would happen to me for the first time, and here we are,” she told CBS News “Unfortunately, this is America for you.”
Robbie Alhadeff is an FSU student whose sister, Alyssa, died in the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas. Alhadeff told ABC News that many of his friends from Parkland attend FSU and that they are terrified to return to classes.
“You could end up being killed just going to learn,” Alhadeff said.
On April. 23, WCTV released an article about protesters who marched from the university to the capital to call on lawmakers to put in more protections for students. Protesters held signs that read “Students Over Guns.”
Jen Massey from Moms Demand Action said that she wants action taken because she fears for the safety of her children.
“Our students should be able to go to class, study, have fun, do all the crazy college things,” Massey said. “But not be in fear of their life.”
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