“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”
– Fred Rogers, Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood
I was at the gym when I heard. The TV was practically muted, but the images told the whole story. There was smoke, the finish line, and runners draped over runners in an effort to get away. I’ve seen this before: Tragedy has struck a large gathering of innocent people. I remember Columbine, 9-11, Virginia Tech, The DC Sniper, and now the “Boston Tragedy.” As a society, we’ve become good at dealing with this sort of trauma. I mean, we’ve named the event within 24 hours of it occurring; that seems like a well-oiled machine to me.
There’s an intrinsic issue when we become accustomed to this amount of violence. I feel like it’s most important to point out that the bomb reaches us on many levels. The explosion is the starting point. The immediate political responses from both Liberals and Conservatives are the societal smoke that clouds our judgment. We constantly discuss the preverbal finish line when we ask questions like, “How do we keep this from happening?” and, “Who do we blame for this?” We forget that the victims are hanging on to each other, trying to get away. We can picture that kind of violence, but we can’t understand that kind of fear. “How can I help?” should be the first thing that crosses our minds. We, the indirectly effected, should be the support for the direct victims to drape themselves over.
The Mission:
Her Campus FSU is asking “How Can We Help?” – no smoke, no finish line. We want to show our support by getting FSU students to post the following as their Facebook default photo until Sunday, April 21st:
We are not asking for much, just the little square space on your Facebook to show that FSU is asking the important questions. Show Boston how much we care!
As Scott Paules pointed out after the murder of his sister in 1990, it is not important who committed this crime or why. It is only important to remember the victims and all they could have been. It is the best defense.
Information on the Victims (according to CNN, 4/17/13):
Martin Richard, 8 years old, from Boston, MA
Krystle Campbell, 29 years old, from Boston, MA
Lingzi Lu, a graduate student from China who attended Boston University
As of Wednesday, April 17, 2013, there were about 180 people hospitalized due to the bombings. According to Dr. Peter Burke, the chief of trauma care at Boston Medical Center, there were two patients in critical condition, ten patients in serious condition, and seven listed as being in fair condition, with many more victims being treated in various local hospitals.
An Encouraging Word From the Her Campus FSU Staff:
“One of my favorite quotes is an old Irish proverb I heard when I was a kid. It says, ‘Death leaves a heartache that time can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal.’ That’s something important we should always remember.”
– Mary Love, Managing Editor
“Hope shines brightest in the darkest moments.”
– Maria Losada, Staff Writer
“Words cannot describe the sympathy and sadness I feel for everyone who was hurt or killed in the Boston bombing. But it was once said he who has hope, has everything. I truly hope and believe this country will be stronger after this tragedy.”
– Jazmyn Reed, Staff Writer
“I would just like to say that the phrase ‘everything is going to be okay’ is hard to hear from someone that’s never been through what you [Bostonians] have been through. I have family in Boston and my roommate’s father was running in that race. I was lucky that those near to me and my loved ones were spared. For those that weren’t, I am deeply saddened by that loss of life as well as the countless injured victims. I won’t say everything is going to be okay because it will mean nothing to you. I just want you, the families and friends of those that suffered this attack, to know that I am here beside you, ready to hold you up if you feel like you are going to fall”.
– Brenna Beightol, Staff Writer