From the President
Tragedies – and Resolve
Jan. 26, 2023
Dear Colleagues,
We are all reeling from the latest mass shootings and numerous fatalities in Half Moon Bay and Monterey Park. Stunningly, these were bookended by other mass shootings in the Central Valley, Oakland and elsewhere. Like you, I am once again deeply saddened – and deeply frustrated – by the lack of political will to devise an effective response to the plague of gun violence.
I also want to acknowledge the particular impact of the Half Moon Bay and Monterey Park shootings on our Asian American community, especially when this should be a time of celebrating the Lunar New Year. These shootings compound the pain of a community long struggling against anti-Asian violence and racism. Once again, I speak for the college in standing against these scourges to the community and our society as a whole.
Each mass shooting is also a scourge – and each is particularized in certain ways. What every incident shares, however, are an easily obtainable firearm, and the pain and mourning that result, both individually and collectively. As I wrote to you last year, on the anniversary of the VTA shootings in San José, there is danger in becoming inured to these events. We cannot resign ourselves to the notion that this kind of violence is inevitable. We must continue to advocate for reasonable public policies to address these shootings, just as we must also continue to support and care for our students, colleagues and friends who may be affected, directly or indirectly, by these tragedies.
With appreciation,
Lloyd