Students worldwide face the daily challenges of survival and making the right choices. Whether it be the tightness in one’s chest before scribbling in a circle on the test, the cloud of confusion making it hard to distinguish between wrong and right, or the simple fear that the world’s persistent habit of somehow letting crimes against students happen, might put you in harm’s way next. As we practice for fire and earthquake drills, we usually pass them off as a joke, “Imagine if it happened, I would grab my stuff and just run out; it’s not that hard,” we think. What comes of the same drill, but for different reasons? We’ve been practicing lockdown drills since we entered school. What would we do then? We can’t run out now, can we? 

Around the world, different drills are taught; these drills are more common in California, but have you ever taken a second to think about the last one? Why should students, the future of our generation, worry about their safety in a place they go to that should be safer than their own home? Students wouldn’t think something would happen to them; they shouldn’t have to. They go to school and come from school. If that simple action jeopardizes their health and safety, what future do we have other than one with kids who have all the right in the world to refuse to go to school for fear of being injured?

Nov 23, 2023: Clouds filled the sky, light drops of water fell from above, and three kids left their school to head home. A girl and boy, five years old, and another six-year-old girl. All three had barely managed to leave the school property, their elementary school property, when they were inhumanely attacked. “Three children were among five people injured on Thursday in a knife attack outside Gaelscoil Colaiste Mhuire, a school for primary-aged children” (Jazeera, 2023) and headlined the news. Knife attack, stabbed children. Three words that should never be allowed to occupy a sentence together. Yet here we are again.

Upon hearing of this barbarous occurrence, the public proceeded to take matters into their own hands. Protests that rapidly became uncontrolled. It turned into full-blown riots. “Rioters torched several city buses and police vehicles and damaged more than a dozen storefronts in the city” (Marx, 2023). The people were intoxicated with the need for justice, and this caused more harm in the making.

This resulted in several arrests and damage to the city. “Police arrested 34 people after Thursday night’s rioting when up to 500 people looted shops, set fire to vehicles, and threw rocks at crowd control officers equipped with helmets and shields” (DANICA KIRKA Associated Press & ABC News, 2023). Bewilderment is one way of describing the shock everyone felt from the sudden and disrupted peace in one of the safest places one could be in. 

University College Dublin Student’s Q&A:

What are your thoughts on crime against students? 

“As a student, I think it’s important to protect the students who come to universities abroad to study. Our current crime measures clearly show a lack of care for said students. We should have better preventative measures to protect students” (Humza Azhar).

“I think it’s awful as the students have not done anything wrong. To be perfectly candid, to damage an innocent life is the same as negatively impacting a ubiquitous community” (Ahmed Ghani).

“In my personal opinion, I find the notion of harming the lives of innocent students who are here to simply study and benefit society as undoubtedly egregious” (Oais Ali). 

Do you think the people involved in the riots were rightfully arrested? 

“Yes. They looted and destroyed property. They also threatened the lives of many innocent immigrant students” (Humza Azhar).

“Yes, as they embarked on duplicitous behavior that was not justified and inhumane” (Ahmed Ghani).

“Yes, they are bad people who did bad things” (Oais Ali).

Which did you think had a worse effect on Dublin’s society, the stabbing or the riots? 

“I think the riots had a worse effect considering that people lost sight of the stabbing in the first place when they let their anger out of control, generalizing groups and threatening the safety of many innocent people.” (Humza Azhar).

“The riots have led to people stealing shoes and puffer jackets (North Faces), therefore negatively impacting everyone else in the community without referring to the main point they are protesting for.” (Ahmed Ghani).

“While the stabbing had a grave impact on the community and is deeply saddening, the riots affected people’s day-to-day lives as stores were looted and broken down” (Oais Ali).

Was day-to-day life harder after/during the riots?

“The riots only affected us when they were happening and directly after since we couldn’t access public transport. I didn’t get my shawarma because of them, bro. Since then, life has returned to normal” (Humza Azhar).

“The riots did not affect me except for going to the city the same day the riots were occurring and a few days after” (Ahmed Ghani).

“Life hasn’t changed due to the riots; only transportation has been messed up due to some buses being burnt and the tram line being burnt” (Oais Ali).

As time flies, not only is crime among students worsening, but the need for doing what some believe isn’t being done is likewise rising. This merely results in more harm than good, judging by the fact that one incident shook the world’s third most peaceful country to its core so hard it decided to destroy itself. Yet the question remains: will this have any impact on hate crimes? Indeed, they did this to make a statement, but what statement did they make? Stop crime or find excuses to commit other ones? A message was sent, and rather than dwell on the latter, I hope this will make a lasting impact and lessen hate crimes.