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Every weekend night in downtown Columbia looks the same: Young men and women, most of them in their 20s, fill the walkways, restaurants and bars that bring Five Points to life when the sun goes down. The fountain at the corner of Greene and Harden streets flows, and there are flashing lights at the end of every street.
Kind of sounds like our favorite Journey song, doesn't it? Except I'm not talking about street lights.
No, I'm talking about the red and blue lights spinning atop the local police cars by every street corner and major bar entrance.
While for many students these lights are a sign of caution, a frantic glance that makes some think twice before clumsily making their way down the sidewalk, for some of us they are a little comforting - or at least they should be.
Last weekend as I waited for that little man to light up and tell me I could cross Harden Street, my faith in the Columbia police who stake out Five Points was shattered as I saw a car speed down the street past a red light, come to a screeching stop after making its way through the intersection and watch a young girl have to jump out of the way to avoid a deadly end to her Saturday night outing.
You would think with three to four police cars surrounding the block, someone would rush over. The speeding driver endangering the pedestrians would be held accountable, whether sober or intoxicated ... but no. Nobody came. No lights went blazing down the road. No, instead the SUV that weighs thousands of pounds kept barreling through the city as a group of us watched with dropped jaws on the corner.
What exactly are these police officers doing in Five Points if they are not there to watch over us? To break up drunken fights, to watch out for drunken drivers, to keep us safe and following the law?
That's what I thought. But apparently not. Instead, they watch the doors to the bar and wait for a 20-year-old to sneak past the bouncer.
I understand the need to watch out for underage drinking. I understand the need to be extra attentive to large groups of kids not paying enough attention to their surroundings.
I appreciate it. What I don't understand and what I don't appreciate is our safety not being considered.
Earlier this school year, Alexandra Virden, a first-year comparative literature student, was struck by a vehicle on this very same corner. Every year, identical if not worse accidents almost happen - most of us have seen these close calls more often than we'd like to admit.
I'm not calling for police to leave alone the fake IDs and stumbling girls trying to walk back up Henderson Street alone - please don't. But you are there not only to keep us in line, but also to keep us safe.
Don't forget that. What's worse? A 20-year-old with a $50 bar tab, or another life ended much too soon?
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