2014 Isla Vista Shootings
In doing the expressive activity I gained more insight into the victim’s experience and would not have understood what they went through had I just read about the tragedy. By forcing myself to experience each part of the narrative such as going to Starbucks, falling to the floor after hearing gunshots and helping the man that had been shot I also faced the victim’s emotional experience. For example, while imagining myself falling to the floor after seeing someone get shot I can almost feel my body drop to the floor as well. Furthermore, I wanted to accentuate the blue sky in my expressive piece as it provided a sense of hope and tranquility when I imagined myself in the situation. After reading about the tragedy and then creating the piece, I really wanted to produce something that reflected the victim’s experience in the event as the media coverage took away from that part of the story. So much of the media coverage focused on Rodger’s personal life and mental history that victims and survivors did not feel validated. I wanted to create something that represented my validation in the survivor’s experience and presented the emotional response I felt after imagining myself as a survivor:
Narrative
"My day began like any other; after arriving onto campus, I headed to Starbucks for my morning coffee and planned to finish up my paper for my Intro to Psych class. Unfortunately, today would not be like any other day because today my life would change forever. As I clicked save and began packing up I noticed a loud, explosive sound from far away. I didn’t really think much about it so I began to walk to my first class of the day. In a matter of a few seconds I heard the tires of a car screeching behind me and a gunshot and I dropped to the floor. I didn’t plan to drop to the floor but it happened instantly. The guy that was sitting in front of me at Starbucks was shot in the arm and was now bleeding all over the cement floor. It happened so fast that I didn’t realize that there was someone in the car and he was aiming in my direction. After another few gunshots the car stormed off and I was left on the floor. My heart was racing, my eyes were filled with tears and the only thing I remember is looking up at the blue sky. I then realized that there was someone with a gunshot wound lying next to me and I frantically got onto my knees and tended to this man. His arm was bleeding excessively so I put my jacket on top of the wound and pressed on it because that’s what they do in the movies. After the campus EMTs arrived and took the man to the hospital I felt safer for about five minutes. Then I came back to reality and heard a group of girls talking about six others that had been shot. What was going on?!"
"The days following were the hardest of my life. Not only was Elliot’s picture plastered all over the news, but all anyone could talk about was the YouTube clip and the manifesto. Elliot was in my psychology class and I never paid any attention to him. The things he said in that video were disgusting to me and I couldn’t believe that another human could plan such a tragedy. I could not bare to watch the whole video as I stopped it half way through. I couldn’t go to school for a few days and the rest of the semester was just a blur. I was horrified to step onto that campus and I couldn’t pay attention in class because I just looked around the class and observed everyone around me. I can’t trust anyone anymore."
In response to A. K.’s reflections, student J. A. wrote:
As I listened to A.K.’s presentation on the 2014 Isla Vista shooting, I couldn’t help but think of how this disaster related to attachment. Specifically, it seemed to me that because the perpetrator had an insecure attachment with his parents, he longed to receive love, affection, and care from his peers at college. Once he felt he was not receiving the attachment he desired, he resorted to extreme and drastic measures. To be clear, I am not absolving the perpetrator of his guilt for the crimes he committed. Instead, I am doing my best to better understand the perpetrator’s motive for committing the heinous and unfortunate acts that transpired
In response to A. K.’s reflections, student A. W. wrote:
Dear A.K.,
Looking at your art piece on the Isla Vista shooting I saw hope and blood, light and fear, and the escape into the sky you spoke of while narrating one student’s experience of the horror. As someone who once lived in Isla Vista, the shock of such a terrifying and unexpected tragedy occurring where there is a belief of safety is devastating. College is a bubble of protected experimentation and predictable risk. An event like the one you shared forces me to question my own sense of immunity from harm. I remember the security I felt living in Santa Barbara among the fragrant eucalyptus trees, cliffs overlooking the beaches and the green grass of the community park where I frequently picnicked alone and with friends. This image is shattered by the trauma in Isla Vista. I wonder how often the students think of that day as they ride their bikes through IV to class. Like other traumas, this event forces a confrontation of how bad things happen to good people. I was also reminded how “bad people” are complex and may have people that love and care for them. I feel their grief and guilt too. Thank you for sharing your experience of that devastating day in honor and remembrance of the young lives that were lost.
Sincerely,
A. W.
In response to A. K.’s reflections, student L. A. wrote:
When A.K. shared her painting about the Santa Barbara shooting, I immediately imagined myself as a victim who has fallen on the ground; as he turns around and gazes at the sky, he breathes one last time. It seemed as though I could feel his bullet wounds. It seemed as though I felt his confusion and I heard his voice echoing in his head, “why me?” I believe the two red flowers that A.K. had drew in her painting was a symbol of blood and innocent people who have been killed in man-made disasters.
The message that I took from A.K.’s reflection is that the time has come for the government to take action and put restrict limits to bear arms. How many innocent people have to die and how many more have to be traumatize? Means of bringing awareness to man-made disasters such as A.K.’s meaningful painting, is an effective way to show the victims and witnesses’ pain to people and draw attention to this critical matter.
