The start of spring at Colorado Mesa University (CMU) is often exciting for the average Maverick. Classes near their end, the familiar Grand Junction sun shines longer and campus buzzes with end-of-the-year activities.
One of the most anticipated on-campus events in spring is the annual Spring Concert thrown by the Programming Activities Council (PAC); though, many students left this year disappointed, if not scared. In addition to the mediocre performances from now-irrelevant artists Baby Bash and Ginuwine, many attendants witnessed the physical assault of one of their peers.
During the start of the concert, which took place the evening of April 30, a sophomore attending CMU was attacked from behind without instigation. Thankfully others in the crowd were able to intervene, causing the aggressor to flee before the student was physically harmed. The assailant– as seen in videos of the incident– is an unidentified, older woman who does not appear to be a student.
This incident points out a major betrayal on CMU’s behalf, as this entire ordeal could have been avoided if the on-campus concert were exclusive to students and staff currently attending the university. While that may sound like an extreme idea, the concert is already paid for in its entirety with student fees by the time it happens.
With that in mind, there isn’t much of a reason to sell tickets to the public, especially when it has proven to pose a threat to the security of students. Moreover, current security and medical services fell short at this year’s concert, as reported on a Facebook group for CMU parents by many concerned parents of Mavs. During this year’s concert, multiple students suffered minor to major injuries without receiving proper attention, a frankly appalling oversight.
If CMU continues to invite the Grand Junction public on campus during these events, there should be a major increase in security presence; this is only more true with concerts, something few people traditionally attend sober.
Given CMU and PAC’s lack of response so far, however, it doesn’t seem as if much will be done for the sake of the unfortunate student or the student body’s safety in the future. No update has been given to students on the victim’s well-being, or whether the aggressor was arrested or got away scot-free. Regardless, I can’t imagine many people are looking forward to next year’s concert after student fees were blown on one-hit-wonder artists who were popular when most of us were babies.
At the end of the day, this year’s Spring Concert was undoubtedly a failure; between the lackluster lineup and absence of concern for the student body’s safety, it’s hard to see how the concert was really meant for the students.
