February 14th is a day where we celebrate the love and appreciation that we have for one another. Unfortunately, this year tragedy struck, hearts were broken and lives were lost. I remember that day so vividly as I was outside of the Graham Center spending time with my friends when I got an alert on my phone saying a school shooting had just happened. It was hard to focus on being happy at that moment when there were people in fear for their lives in a place that should be considered “safe.” Seventeen lives were lost and fourteen were wounded, some even fighting for their lives in the hospital.
The shooter has been identified to be 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, a former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Broward County, Florida. People believe his motive was to get revenge on the students who referred to him as a “loner” and “weirdo.” He was expelled from the high school when he got into a physical altercation with another student regarding his ex-girlfriend. Cruz was on a mission that day to shoot anyone in his path no matter who they were. One of the people he shot was football coach and security guard, Aaron Feis. Coach Feis is considered a hero in my eyes as he shielded students from the shooter while risking his own life. Students on the football team tweeted “He died a hero and he will forever be in our hearts and memories.”
Photo from www.twitter.com
On Thursday, Cruz was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder and made a court appearance only responding with “yes, your honor.” His attorney spoke for him saying that he felt remorseful for the actions that he committed and he is just a “broken human being.” Cruz admitted to intentionally going to the school with a firearm to shoot inside classrooms. He is disturbed, but that does not excuse his actions and all of the families he has just ruined.
As an FIU community, our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families of this tragedy. President Mark Rosenberg released a statement saying “Our deepest and sincerest condolences go out to the victims and their families.” To pay respect to the lives lost and the FIU students who have been personally affected by the tragedy, the community will be coming together in remembrance of them. In a world that has been recently filled with hate, we all must come together with intentions of love in order to hope for a better future.