By Lia LehrerThe Daily Northwestern
Hundreds of Northwestern students and community members gathered for a candlelight vigil at The Rock on Wednesday night to commemorate the lives lost in Monday’s shootings at Virginia Tech.
For about half an hour, participants held candles and listened to speakers in front of Harris Hall. The event’s attendees filled the space surrounding The Rock, which was painted with Virginia Tech’s logo.
NU joined schools across the country in remembering the victims of the shootings at the Blacksburg, Va., campus. The alleged gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, killed 32 people before killing himself in the deadliest one-man shooting spree in recent U.S. history.
First-year Kellogg student Nam Ong, who graduated from Virginia Tech in 1999, said he was touched by Wednesday night’s gathering.
“It makes me feel a lot better about being here and being around the type of people who would do this,” Ong said.
Speakers at the vigil included Weinberg sophomore Nathan Zebrowski, who helped organize the event; University Chaplain Timothy Stevens and Associated Student Government President Jon Webber.
Webber, a SESP junior, said Monday’s violence showed that emotional safety is just as important as physical safety.
“All we can do is what we did tonight – show up and mourn the loss of 33 individuals,” Webber said.
Zebrowski asked for other students to come forward and speak at the vigil. Six students discussed their personal connections to Virginia Tech, including lessons they’ve learned from the news and thoughts for preventing future attacks.
One student called on NU students to dress in maroon and orange, Virginia Tech’s school colors.
Zebrowski said he came up with the idea for the vigil after noticing students reading newspapers in dining halls. He said he thought that everyone felt the same about the tragedy. Zebrowski joined with Stevens and Weinberg junior Mike Breidenbach to pull together the event.
“In tragedy, people have to come together as a support group,” Breidenbach said. “People need to know that what they’re feeling is not an abnormality.”
Stevens said the ceremony was an important way for NU to reaffirm its values of safety and freedom.
“Everything the university stands for was assaulted on Monday when someone decided to use violence to respond to whatever grievance he felt,” Stevens said.
Weinberg freshman Louise Huterstein said everyone is affected by what happened at Virginia Tech.
Huterstein said she felt especially terrible when she heard the news, because she has a friend who attends Virginia Tech.
Many students and faculty said the attacks made them feel vulnerable.
“Although it happened far away, it hits close to home,” Breidenbach said. “There’s no reason why it couldn’t happen at Northwestern or any Chicago school or any university.”
Stevens said the scope of the tragedy is hard to comprehend, and it’s important for students to seek help if they need it.
“Coming together in troubling times is one of the best signs of a community,” he said.
A pair of banners from the event will be sent to Virginia Tech, along with a book filled with students’ messages.
Students who wish to sign the book can find it on the first floor of Norris University Center.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Reach Lia Lehrer at [email protected].
