Last week, several members of The Hilltop entered the Bethune Annex residence, flashed identification, and waltzed right onto the dorm’s elevators. These members of The Hilltop weren’t residences of the dorm, yet were granted entrance without so much as a second look from security.
Every student has had this experience. Walking home late from the Undergraduate Library, you glance at a strategically parked campus police car, and notice that either the officer inside is snoring in the front seat, or even worse, that the car is empty.
Or one evening, on a walk with friends across campus, you, on a whim, decide to push the blinking blue button on an emergency call box, and not so surprisingly, don’t receive an answer. It’s pretty sad.
But what if by chance, that student leaving UGL was confronted by someone looking to snatch his or her wallet and headphones? Or if the person who pushed the call box really needed help and no one answered their call?
Although our security force here at Howard isn’t perfect, it does have its strong points. The security guards in UGL and the iLab won’t so much as let a student step foot inside the campus buildings they protect without showing some type of valid identification. The iLab has recently even began using an electronic scanner to ensure the identification students show is current, and actually belongs to them. But while these locations might be secure, what about the dorms? And other places on campus?
When will someone be held accountable for random students being able to sidestep security and gain entrance? When will officers be held accountable for napping on the job and zooming around campus buildings on their segways, instead of doing what their supposed to be doing - protecting Howard University students on a consistent and responsible basis.
This editorial isn’t meant to serve as a total blast of HUPD. A lot of officers commit much of their time and energy to making sure we’re safe and secure as students.
For example, campus police Chief Leroy James has personally helped install dozens of the aforementioned blue light emergency systems across campus himself.
But isn’t it time Howard University really invested in more advanced technology and security reform that will actually benefit the safety of students?
Students might initially dislike being rejected from their best friend’s dorm while trying to sneak in, and officers on late night shifts might be a little peeved about missing out on naptime, but what’s more important? Sneaking into dorms and catching a couple Z’s, or the safety of Howard University students?
Security should be one of Howard University’s greatest concerns.
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