Following recent crime incidents on campus, U of M students have begun organizing a group to propose a motion and protests for safety that will demand better communication from the university.
Olivia Macdonald Mager, a teaching assistant and the organizer for the newly formed group stated, “I think students are feeling stressed and confused. I think they’re feeling let down by the administration.”
These incidents have reignited concerns about the efficacy of the university’s security services and the adequacy of its communication measures. Macdonald Mager feels the university has handled previous safety incidents insufficiently and that a re-evaluation of safety protocols is necessary.
“I think that they need to review their protocols but also consult with the students and the staff and the faculty about what to do in [these] cases,” Macdonald Mager said.
On Nov. 19, the Winnipeg Police Service were notified of an adult male armed with a knife at the U of M campus. Although the incident occurred at approximately 6:30 a.m., statements from the university and notifications to all students and staff, as well as to regular civilians, were not released until hours later.
“Civilians who are not students, staff or faculty need to be aware because there are people on campus who did not know what was going on at the time, and that can be really scary,” stated Macdonald Mager.
Macdonald Mager acknowledged that complete safety on campus is unrealistic, but she stressed the importance and need for better communication from the university to students and faculty members when safety breaches occur.
“Students need to be more aware about where to go in cases like this. There needs to be push notifications to all phones,” Macdonald Mager said.
Macdonald Mager also wants staff, faculty and students to know that they have rights that can be exercised, such as the right that staff can cancel classes and the right that students do not have to attend classes if they feel their safety is jeopardized.
Macdonald Mager stated that “there were a lot of staff and faculty who were locked down in their offices but didn’t know if they had the right to email their students and tell them that classes were cancelled until the administration themselves cancelled all the classes.”
According to Macdonald Mager, faculty members, including the head of her department, have acknowledged that the university’s communications were a failure.
The group is committed to making sure that recent incidents are dealt with transparently and that student input is heard and prioritized. They hope that their demands can be met and declare that a simple review of policies is not enough.
Ideally, a safe campus to Macdonald Mager consists of swipe cards, key fobs, more security and more cameras.
Macdonald Mager expressed “there’s no magic bullet. I think it has to be a comprehensive look at how we’re treating security.”
