{"id":70184,"date":"2014-04-30T11:30:16","date_gmt":"2014-04-30T16:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=70184"},"modified":"2014-06-27T01:01:06","modified_gmt":"2014-06-27T06:01:06","slug":"addressing-an-elephant-active-shooter-in-the-library","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=70184","title":{"rendered":"Addressing an Elephant: Active Shooter in the Library"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Aimee Graham, Head Editor, INALJ Georgia<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Addressing an Elephant: Active Shooter in the Library<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"aimeegraham\"<\/a>April 20, 1999 started off like any normal school day at the end of an academic year; students joked in\u00a0the hallways, attended classes, seniors discussed plans for after graduation, and friends met in common\u00a0spaces such as the cafeteria. Little did the nation know that a hell fire would break loose in the quiet\u00a0town of Littleton, Colorado when two students would wreak 20 minutes of per carnage, leaving 14\u00a0students (the shooters included) and one teacher dead, 24 injured and a nation forever changed.<\/p>\n

The massacre at Columbine is not the only disaster at an academic institution in American history \u2013\u00a0many had happened before and it is becoming a sad reality that lately we are hearing of acts of extreme\u00a0violence continuously on our televisions and in internet sources. What brings Columbine to the focal\u00a0point in this discussion is that of the 12 students murdered that day, 10 of them were in the library; of\u00a0the 24 injured, 12 were there. 52 students, two teachers, and two librarians were trying to barricade\u00a0themselves that day in the library by hiding under desks. Patti Nelson, one of the teachers in the library,\u00a0is the voice on a now famous 911 call to authorities in which you can hear her instructing the students to\u00a0stay down while you can hear one of the gunmen in the background yelling.<\/p>\n

It is not without apprehension that I write this blog posting, thinking of the lives lost in such a terrible\u00a0tragedy and the lives of those whom have since perished in others. My intent is not to frighten anyone\u00a0from joining our noble profession, or to plant a seed in which more wreckage can ensue. But with such\u00a0a rise in violence, particularly in our schools, it is only realistic to look at the obvious \u2013 as libraries,\u00a0gathering grounds for people of all walks of life and a place of knowledge and distraction, are \u201csitting\u00a0ducks\u201d. One professor during my graduate studies briefly discussed this reality after the massacre in\u00a0Newton, Connecticut, but as the subject was still rather sensitive he didn\u2019t know HOW to discuss it. How\u00a0do we prepare ourselves, in a profession noted for its obedience and structure, for a scenario in which\u00a0all poise is tossed out the window and we are feeling the worst anxiety and fear imaginable? How does\u00a0one protect themselves and their patrons from a madman?<\/p>\n

I do not have a solid answer to give, a sure fire way to make sure that everything would be hunky-dory.\u00a0Since we are facing a possible reality in this post, look at the facts: Many libraries of all varieties have\u00a0either security personnel in the library or on campus, but how many of them are capable of subduing or\u00a0holding off someone with a plan for destruction? There are metal detectors but once again it is virtually\u00a0powerless in such a situation. And police could take several minutes to reach a location and then have to\u00a0survey the scene. But what I can give you are a few tips, based off of military training, on what to do in a\u00a0crisis.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have your cell phone on hand:<\/strong> In many libraries it is advised not to bring your cell phone to the\u00a0reference desk or have it on the floor, but having access to contact emergency services is your\u00a0biggest lifeline.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Breathe:<\/strong> Seems simple enough, but in moments of panic we as humans tense up and freeze. We\u00a0lose recognition of procedures, directions, and go more off of instinct. This can be a good or bad\u00a0thing, but making sure to keep breathing is the best thing you can do for yourself.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Have a game plan in place and practice it with your employees:<\/strong> Many places with extreme\u00a0weather (such as frequent tornadoes and hurricanes) have evacuation and safety procedures\u00a0they practice and follow if the need arises. All institutions have emergency exits and fire routes.\u00a0Train your employees for a situation just as you would any other.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Get yourself and patrons to a room that can be locked:<\/strong> Whether it be a bathroom, an office, or\u00a0a closet, get as many patrons into a safe location away from the shooter that can obstruct them\u00a0in as short a period of time as possible. Not everyone will be able to fit in one location so do not\u00a0give the intruder(s) an opportunity by holding the door open while waiting for others.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Turn off the lights, stay down and stay quiet:<\/strong> Especially if your door has a window, you want to\u00a0hide yourself from view. If an intruder knows anyone is in that room, they will find means to get\u00a0in.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not respond to any unfamiliar voices:<\/strong> Even if it sounds as though a patron is pleading to\u00a0enter or says it is the police, DO NOT move or open the door. It could very well be the intruder\u00a0and (s)he is trying to cox you into opening the door. As with a previous bullet, make sure\u00a0someone is on the phone with emergency services and wait for them to confirm it is in fact\u00a0rescuers.<\/p>\n

As stated, this posting was not intended to frighten anyone nor plant a seed, nor was it meant to belittle\u00a0the experiences and memories of those whom have gone through such terror; it is to educate those in\u00a0this rather public profession of a grim reality hopefully none of us will ever face. Working in libraries,\u00a0we have all met our share of shady characters and we never know who is going to be the next person to\u00a0walk through the door. As with any protective procedures, the best that we can do for ourselves and our\u00a0patrons is to be prepared if a situation arises.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Aimee Graham, Head Editor, INALJ Georgia Addressing an Elephant: Active Shooter in the Library April 20, 1999 started off like any normal school day at the end of an academic year; students joked in\u00a0the hallways, attended classes, seniors discussed plans for after graduation, and friends met in common\u00a0spaces such as the cafeteria. Little did…<\/p>\n

Read more \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":63144,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145],"tags":[4192,69,3592,6181,3593,6183,6182],"class_list":["post-70184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-aimee-graham","tag-article","tag-blog","tag-emergencies","tag-inalj-georgia","tag-safety","tag-school-shootings"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/15093_133739483442688_1289912329_n.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1WoMK-ig0","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=70184"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70184\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/63144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=70184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=70184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=70184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}