On the afternoon of November 9, local time in the United States, a vicious gun robbery occurred in the neighborhood near the University of Chicago, and a Chinese student who recently graduated from the University of Chicago was unfortunately killed. This is the second incident of Chinese students being shot and killed this year near the University of Chicago, and in January this year, a Chinese student who was studying for a doctorate at the University of Chicago was tragically killed in a serial shooting.
In the face of heart-wrenching tragedies, how to ensure the personal safety of international students has once again become the focus of public attention.
Dark clouds hung over Chicago
After the shooting, on November 11, the Chinese Consulate General in Chicago issued the "Tips on Strengthening Security Precautions for Chinese Citizens in the Consular District", strongly condemning the murderous crime of indiscriminate killing of innocents, demanding that the relevant US departments investigate and publicize the case as soon as possible, and take practical measures to protect the safety of Chinese citizens, including Chinese students studying abroad. At the same time, the Consulate General reminds Chinese citizens in the consular district, including Chinese students, to pay close attention to the public security situation in their places of residence, pay attention to timely understanding of the safety warning information issued by the locality, avoid going to unsafe places, further improve risk awareness, strengthen safety precautions, and ensure their own safety.
Hai xi (pseudonym), a Chinese student who is studying in the second year of graduate school at the University of Chicago, said in an interview with this reporter that after the shooting, the frequency of Chinese students going out around them has dropped sharply, and students who can take online classes at home have minimized the number of trips to school. When you have to go to a nearby supermarket to buy, everyone will also go together and avoid going out alone.
University of Chicago President Paul Alivisator posted a video the day after the shooting to express condolences to the Chinese students who were unfortunately killed in the incident, while saying that Chicago is currently developing a plan to provide short-term and long-term public safety strategies for Hyde Park and the surrounding community.
But how effective such efforts will ultimately be, some local Chinese students have expressed doubts.
"When tragedies like this occur, the local police force around the school will be increased, and the school authorities will also say that the security force will be strengthened, but I don't feel that there is much substantive effect." This is also the reason why some students reacted particularly strongly after this incident - shootings are difficult to prevent, making students very insecure. Li Yuexing (pseudonym), a Chinese student also studying at the University of Chicago, told reporters.
Rational response to vicious crimes
Heich told reporters that just recently in the morning of Halloween, her college had a faculty member who was blocked and robbed by gangsters, and now there has been such a bad shooting incident, which makes her and her classmates feel very difficult to accept.
As a prestigious private research university, the University of Chicago, founded in 1890 by the "oil king" John Rockefeller, gave birth to the famous "Chicago School", but the rampant crime and gun violence here have also become a problem for students. According to Data from Chicago Police, as of November 7 this year, there were more than 130 shootings in and around Hyde Park, an increase of 44% over the same period last year.
In the face of frequent heinous crimes, especially gun-wielding gangsters, how can students maximize their safety?
In the "Safety Manual for Studying in the United States" (hereinafter referred to as the "Safety Manual") compiled by the Study Abroad Service Center of the Ministry of Education, the chapter "Social Security" explains several types of crimes such as fraud, robbery, theft, sexual assault, kidnapping, murder, shooting, etc., reminding students to improve their self-prevention and coping skills.
According to the precautionary reminder in the Safety Manual, students should try not to expose their personal property to prevent being followed or premeditated robbery; if they are aware of being followed, they should go to the mall as soon as possible to the crowded and well-lit area. If you are sure to be being followed, kick a stop on the side of the road to trigger an alarm, or carry a whistle that can be blown with you to attract the attention of others. Once encountering a robbery case, keep calm and do not blindly resist, keeping safety first; paying attention to and remembering the robber's physical characteristics, the characteristics of the weapons he holds, the model and license plate number of the car, etc.; pay attention to protecting the evidence at the scene, if there are witnesses, please wait for the police to come, or leave his phone number to contact the police to testify.
Mr. Li had been robbed by gangsters near his residence last Christmas. He told reporters that in the face of the knife-wielding gangsters, he directly took out the wallet in his pocket and handed it to the other party, and the gangsters fled the scene immediately after getting their hands on it, without harming him. Li Yuexing immediately called the police and described to the police the main physical characteristics of the gangsters.
"In retrospect, I still feel fortunate that if the gangsters had gone further, the outcome would have been different." Li Yuexing said.
Security awareness is not slackened
Concerns about safety hazards have also affected the mentality of local international students. Many of Heich's Chinese students, who had recently arrived in Chicago, were planning to move out of their homes near Hyde Park even if they paid a hefty liquidated damages— the shooting took place near Hyde Park.
"After that shooting at the beginning of this year, we were nervous for a while and on high alert. But after a long time, it is easy to relax, and it is not easy to maintain a high state of tension for a long time. Heyshe said that many students have downloaded and installed a security APP called "citizen", which can remind users of criminal incidents or safety accidents that have occurred around them at any time, and users can also upload dangerous situations for the police to investigate and deal with or dismiss alarms.
"When I first installed the app, I was also intimidated by the content it pushed so often, just close to us, that there could be several robberies in one night. At first, people would discuss how the situation was so serious, but then they became 'accustomed'. She said.
Haixi told reporters that just two weeks ago, a group of three of their classmates drove to the supermarket to buy, and when they returned home, they got out of the car to move things from the trunk, and the door on the driver's side was not closed. A local woman happened to be driving by, and she rolled down the car window to remind Haixi and his party very seriously: "Don't open the car door to the trunk to move things in the future, this is very dangerous, the car is easy to be robbed directly!" The reminder of the passerby made Heich and her classmates feel afraid, "Maybe at some moment when we are lax, danger will occur, and all previous careful efforts will lose their meaning." Heyshe said.
"Not going out" has become a helpless move for some local Chinese students at this time, and some of the brothers and sisters who originally consulted Haixi about the application of the University of Chicago also planned to change the study institution or city.
"I myself received my acceptance two years ago, when Chicago didn't have such a prominent safety hazard, and now, the safety problem has greatly affected our study abroad life," Hehi said. If people have been in a state of mental tension and tense nerves at all times, then negative emotions will gradually accumulate, and the psychological state will be easy to go negative. ”
People's Daily overseas reporter Sun Yahui