My daughter, Sydney, is a sophomore at Bucknell and like many students, she has had a tough year. Between suddenly having all of her classes go remote, the food program being really hard (at least last semester) and the lack of social experiences, it's been a hard year for her. But one thing that was awesome, is her experience at her residence hall, Fran's House.
But last week, she had an experience that no one at college should have. Her house was attacked by a group of graduating seniors, members of a fraternity that had previously lived in the building that she now lives in. As reported on the Bucknell website:
As reported to Public Safety, a group of male students approached the house at 825 Fraternity Road, which formerly housed the Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) fraternity until that group's removal two years ago. In the events that ensued, these men allegedly harassed and intimidated the residents of Tower House while attempting to enter the building. We note that TKE does not formally exist at the University, is no longer a recognized student organization, and is banned from campus operations. It is clear from multiple accounts that the students violated the physical space and, far more importantly, the residents' sense of place and security. Further, it is equally clear that Bucknell Public Safety's response to the incident was lacking in myriad ways.
Fran's House RA, Tyler Luong gave more details about what happened when the campus security in a note to the President of Bucknell:
When Public Safety arrived, they laughed at the situation. President Bravman, the officers bonded with our offenders, reminiscing their college days and calling them handsome young men. President Bravman, the two officers didn't even speak to me. Neither of the two officers came up to us Fran's House residents to ask if we were okay. AND THEN THEY PROMISED TO TALK TO THE CHIEF OF PUBLIC SAFETY TO GET THEM ACCESS TO OUR HOUSE WHEN FINALS WEEK WAS OVER, SHAKING EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEIR HANDS.
This was an outrageous act on the part of campus security, ignoring the victims while volunteering to do what they could to help the attackers. TKE was banned from the University and has no official presence at Bucknell at all. But that apparently didn't stop this group of people from coming back to what used to be their house and terrorizing the current residents. And make no mistake, that was their goal. To make the current residents feel unsafe in their home.
Not enough people understand what it is not to have a safe space. I certainly don't. I, like many other, live in a world where all of their spaces are safe. So we don't understand the big deal. I've seen the comments of people who said Hey, they were just being stupid kids, don't make it such a big deal. Someone on Twitter actually asked:
Ask yourself: Would you rather the world was run by these drunken louts or by the students who wrote these letters? I'd pick government-by-Neanderthal over government-by-Cultural-Revolutionaries every time.
Only someone who has lived their lives in constant safe spaces would even dare suggest that the world is better off being ruled by drunken louts over people asking to be treated equally and to have a safe space to live. It's amazing how many folks seem to think being held responsible for your actions is a cultural revolution.
Fran's House is an incredible haven. During this awful, stressful year for all students, my daughter has found a support system in Fran's House that quite frankly should serve as a model for all residential living at Bucknell. For that matter, every university should be thrilled to have a housing community like they have at Fran's House. We are grateful every day that Sydney has found her people who support and love her.
The residents of Fran's House