Oct. 12, 2010 is one of the saddest days in our school’s history, on that day 19-year-old Diana Gonzalez was murdered. The attack, that took place in one of the men’s restrooms that evening, surprised students, faculty, workers and administrators.
Gonzalez’s estranged husband, Armando Gabriel Perez is believed to be linked to her murder; he remains a fugitive.
For students, Diana’s death reminds us constantly of the importance of being safe in our campus. After the murder, many students that had to walk by that bathroom at night were frightened.
Considering City College is an open campus and anyone can walk onto campus the fear is understandable.
Although City College is just two minutes from the San Diego Police Department, that doesn’t make us feel safer. Without the budget to have surveillance cameras to record everyone who enters and leaves the buildings, we are on our own.
An article from SignOnSanDiego states that: “San Diego logged just 29 homicides in 2010, a level not seen since the 24 of 1968. That’s 29 homicides in a city of 1.4 million people, double the population of 42 years ago.”
Unfortunately, Diana’s murder didn’t lead to any major improvements in our school’s security. A year later, not many things have changed, and the incident has brought up a lot of concerns regarding our safety.
Poor lighting at our school is still an issue. Students that attend night classes know, there are many areas that can be dangerous to walk.
Walking from the trolley, under the bridges, to the parking structure, even walking to the restroom becomes an odyssey due the unknown potential for danger.
The official website of the school portrays the path between Park Boulevard and President’s Way to City College as “a short walk from campus,” but they don’t mention whether it is a safe walk.
We don’t have shuttle services or the necessary police force, and students must walk to and from their cars. This creates uncertainty among many students about how safe we are at school after dusk.
Some consider carrying pepper spray, but it is considered a weapon, even though some might find it necessary or comforting for their personal security on the campus.
Despite police escorts and domestic violence awareness efforts, the results have been minor, considering there has been a killing on campus.
Even when Diana’s murder was handled as a domestic violence case, the safety measures in place should have provided some protection.
The campus has a responsibility to provide a safe environment for its employees and students.
Perhaps because of the anniversary of Diana’s death we’ve seen more police around our campus. But the reality is that, the school is responsible for ensuring our safety and we have not felt a genuine desire from our school to make radical changes. We cannot continue with our work and studies if we don’t feel safe.
