FILE PHOTO: Norlin Library (Courtesy of the University of Colorado Boulder)
Alexia: Hi! I’m Alexia Bailey, a sophomore here at CU Boulder. While I may just be in my second year, I’m here to share everything I’ve picked up so far, which is a surprising amount of information. “What’s Eating at Alexia” is my unofficial and unfiltered guide to some of the things that being a CU Boulder Buff brings. Think of it as your guide to navigating everything that makes CU Boulder, well, CU Boulder. Whether you’re a freshman finding your footing or a senior with “no body, no crime” level grievances about finals week, I’m here to share my takes, tips and honest observations on everything from the sometimes-unpredictable Buff Bus system to navigating campus protests (or dodging them entirely). College is a wild, unforgettable ride, and “What’s eating at Alexia” is here to make sense of some of it, one opinion at a time.
When I boarded the Buff Bus on Monday, I didn’t realize that by the time I got back to my apartment, I would have to call my mom and tell her that I was okay and unharmed.
On August 25, University of Colorado Boulder students were ordered to shelter in place after reports of shots being fired near Norlin Library. Hours later, the university confirmed it may have been a swatting incident.
For those of us confused by what swatting is, swatting is defined by the Homeland Security office as “a malicious act that can involve placing false emergency calls to emergency responders, often reporting a (false) severe, ongoing crisis at a specific location.” So in layman’s terms, it was a hoax.
The thing about hoaxes, though, is that they don’t feel fake in the moment. For half an hour, hundreds of us lived in fear that our campus was the next national headline. It didn’t matter that no bullets were fired; the fear was real. And that fear lingers. You see, we as a country have gotten so used to the idea of lockdowns and alerts that they almost feel routine. But it shouldn’t feel routine. College is supposed to be about learning, about community, about messy dorm rooms and late-night runs to the Hill, not about wondering whether today’s push notification is about someone illegally driving on Folsom Field or a mass shooting.
Swatting is often written off as a prank, but nothing about it is funny. It wastes police resources, it disrupts lives, and worst of all, it plays with the raw, open wound of gun violence in America. For students, it’s not a harmless joke; it’s trauma in real time. CU handled the logistics as best as it could, but the truth is no campus is really prepared for how to communicate safety when “safety” itself feels like an illusion. Maybe the shelter order lifted, but the unease doesn’t.
I shouldn’t have to remind you what to do in an active harmer situation. I shouldn’t have to remind you that first, if you can run, do. You get somewhere where the person responsible for the danger isn’t. If you can’t run, hide. And lastly, I shouldn’t have to tell you that if you can’t hide, you fight. That’s the order: run, hide and fight. It’s a mantra we’ve all been drilled on since middle school, recited the way other generations might have rattled off the Pledge of Allegiance. The fact that we can say it without hesitation should terrify us. It means the unimaginable has become something we imagine every single day.
There are resources on campus if you are still feeling understandably uneasy. Counseling and Psychiatric Services (CAPS) offers support with trained therapists, and your first six sessions are free. If you need someone to talk to right away, you can call the CAPS crisis line at (303) 492-2277, available 24/7. For more immediate support, the Office of Victim Assistance (OVA) provides confidential advocacy and can help connect you with resources both on and off campus. You can reach them at (303) 492-8855. And if you’re looking for community rather than crisis care, CU Boulder also has peer groups and wellness workshops through Health Promotion, where students can connect with others who understand what it’s like to process fear and uncertainty.
Lastly, if you see something, say something. I know it might feel a little daunting to report something that seems small, but trust your instincts. I promise that it’s always better to share a concern than to ignore it. You can call CU Boulder Police at (303) 492-6666 for non-emergencies, or 911 if you feel there’s an immediate threat. Even submitting an anonymous tip through CU’s online reporting system can make a difference. Safety on campus isn’t just about alerts and shelter-in-place orders; it’s about a community that looks out for one another. Whether that means reaching out for support, checking in on a friend, or flagging something that doesn’t feel right, every step matters.
Dearest readers, I leave you with this: we live in a time where gun violence in places of education is a daily, weekly and monthly thing. The alerts on our phones are constant reminders that safety, once assumed, now feels conditional. We go to class prepared with laptops, pens and mental notes on exit routes. That shouldn’t be the norm, but it is. What happened at Norlin Library may have been a hoax, but the fear it sparked was not. Every shelter-in-place order chips away at the sense of security we’re told college should give us. We’re not just students anymore; we’re practicing running, hiding and fighting. And even when the all-clear comes, the unease lingers long after. That’s because safety is a funny thing. You don’t notice it until it’s gone.
Contact CU Independent Opinion Editor Alexia Bailey at alexia.bailey@colorado.edu
