HBCU Homecomings have been a staple, celebrated by celebs, alums and members of the Black neighborhood for many years. Nonetheless, might outsiders from surrounding areas selecting to attend these celebrations be placing folks at risk?
On this TSR Investigates unique, a Clark Atlanta freshman, Damarion Seaton is talking out about his expertise following a capturing at a current homecoming occasion and sharing the main points surrounding the moments earlier than he was shot.
Shootings At HBCU Homecomings Mar Celebrations, Put College students In Hazard, Attendants Say
Related occasions occurred simply days prior at a live performance at Morehouse Faculty the place G Herbo was the headliner and that exact same day at Livingstone Faculty in Salisbury, North Carolina throughout an Asian Doll efficiency.
TSR additionally spoke to campus officers and Atlanta Police to see what they plan on doing to make occasions safer for college students, who say they worry for his or her wellbeing now when going to homecoming occasions.
Will HBCU’s be capable to resolve these issues by beefing up safety? Or will they’ve to shut their occasions to outsiders totally? The Shade Room investigates…
Seaton, the Clark Atlanta freshman, stated it was a late evening vibe, with meals, music, dancing exterior the Woodruff Library on the Atlanta college middle.
“We have been all hanging out and so they get to capturing, capturing proper in the midst of the place we was at and I received shot, I received grazed,” Seaton instructed TSR Investigates’ Justin Carter. “I assume in my case I’m simply used to it – the place I come from (Chicago)” – some of the harmful and lethal cities within the nation.
Seaton was amongst three college students shot that evening. A feminine sufferer refused medical consideration on the scene.
Three College students Shot At Clark Atlanta Homecoming: “You’d Assume You Would Be Secure On Campus”
The Chicago native selected to attend faculty in Atlanta for a recent begin.
“You’d assume you’d be protected on campus,” Seaton went on to say. “However on the similar time, it’s additionally not stunning.”
Clark College Chief of Police Debra Williams stated the division has since elevated officer patrols and added the incident stays beneath investigation.
Scholar Shot At Morehouse Faculty Homecoming – The First Since 2019 – A Day Prior To Clark Shootings
In the meantime, simply at some point prior at a Morehouse Faculty, the scene at homecoming was no totally different. As college students danced and sang together with G Herbo manning emcee duties, one scholar was shot in the course of the live performance.
Video exhibits the rapper performing as a gunshot can clearly be heard within the background.
Ajah Crittenden, who recorded the viral clip, was within the entrance row for that present, and spoke solely with TSR Investigates’ Justin Carter.
“I used to be recording him and also you simply hear loud pops,” she stated. “No one knew what it was at first, Herb was simply standing there too. He didn’t even know what it was.”
She stated she panicked a bit bit, however “knew I needed to keep sturdy as a result of my pal was panicking too.”
No Steel Detectors Used At Morehouse Homecoming, With College students Even Forcing Their Approach In Previous Safety
Nobody was checked on the door previous to the live performance at Morehouse, as a result of the live performance was already operating late. It was the primary homecoming occasion on the college since 2019, having closed down festivities in 2020 and 2021 because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
In truth, college students truly compelled the doorways open earlier than officers might get them by metallic detectors.
“We didn’t know the place it was coming from and there wasn’t a number of exits,” Crittenden added.
When requested if she feels protected on campus, she replied she does, saying “there may be solely a lot the (safety) guards can do,” however famous that one thing must be completed to forestall incidents like this from occurring sooner or later.
“It’s an open campus, and there may be extra of us than there are of them (safety guards). They need to have ready higher and had extra guards out right here,” she stated.
Related Capturing At Livingstone Faculty Throughout Asian Doll Homecoming Live performance, Suspect Charged With Tried Homicide
And add extra safety guards is precisely what Livingstone Faculty in Salisbury, North Carolina, did after an identical homecoming capturing at their campus.
As Asian Doll carried out in entrance of a raucous crowd of scholars, a struggle reportedly broke out within the viewers, with the sound of gunshots caught on video as within the Morehouse incident.
Janiya White, who was at that occasion, injured her foot amidst the chaos.
“Seeing folks on the bottom and being pulled away on stretchers. It simply made me break down and cry,” White instructed a neighborhood NBC affiliate.
Police say 21-year-old Talib Kelly was shot in the course of the Livingstone Faculty incident, nevertheless he was additionally named as a suspect as nicely.
Kelly, who was not a scholar on the college, has since been charged with tried first-degree homicide, discharging a firearm on instructional property, and possession of a firearm by a felon. Police are additionally wanting right into a second doable suspect within the case.
Livingstone Faculty President Says College Can’t Shut Doorways To Group, However Modifications Will Be Made After Homecoming Capturing
When requested how a non-student might attend the faculty’s homecoming celebration, Livingstone Faculty President Dr. Anthony Davis instructed TSR Investigates that “we open our doorways to everybody.”
Dr. Davis stated it will be a “knee-jerk response” to shut the campus off from the neighborhood, noting the underlying problems with the town-and-gown selection.
“We open our doorways to everybody,” Dr. Davis stated. “And I believe it’s irresponsible on our half to say ‘hey, let’s shut our campus to the neighborhood,’ that wouldn’t be good. It’s that knee-jerk response.”
Nonetheless, modifications will likely be made, Davis stated, with metallic detectors and a clear-bag coverage that they already had in place for soccer video games.
Each Spellman and Morehouse schools held their homecoming occasions over the weekend with out incident, with the Chief of Police at Spellman saying they did make use of further officers in anticipation of any potential shootings.
There are a number of main HBCU homecomings arising this weekend, with Texas A&M, Florida A&M College, Delaware State, North Carolina A&T. All of them stated they’ve applied clear bag insurance policies and will likely be beefing up patrols at their respective occasions.
TSR Investigates explores chilly circumstances and particular curiosity information tales underrepresented in mainstream media.
