UF professors in Brussels remind us terror is close to home

We grew up watching this war unfold 

Our generation grew up watching television, and seeing the War on Terror. The bleakness of that notion is hard to swallow because of its accuracy. From the Holocaust to modern day terrorism, the death count of those murdered by terrorists is often reduced to a statistic – especially by us Westerners who are oceans away from the sites of horror such as Paris, the Middle East and, most recently, Brussels.

These are people, not faces on screens

We share photos showing our support on Facebook and quickly shake our heads to the evil in this world before switching back to our Instagram feeds. The thought is often lost because terror appears to be so astronomically far away from home.

In regard to this week’s terror attacks, tragedy struck much closer to home than many UF students may have initially realized. As reported by The Gainesville Sun, four UF faculty members were in Brussels during the time of the attacks, and Professor Robert Knechel was in a plane that touched down at the Brussels airport just moments prior to the bombs being deployed. Had he deplaned and entered the terminal  sooner, about fifteen minutes according to him, the deaths in Brussels may have impacted our campus on a deeply personal level.

They are a brother or a sister, a son or a daughter

While it is a blessing all of our faculty members were unharmed, the idea they may have been harmed is enough to make us realize that for many human beings, there is no computer screen or ocean to hide behind in the midst of tragedy. For many, the statistic we shrug off has a face and a heartbeat. That statistic is a brother or a sister, a friend or a husband or wife. And no matter what people say, that statistic is a tragedy for far too many people on this earth.

The War on Terror continues as a tragedy that can strike at any point and that is closer to home than many of us acknowledge. Until horror strikes our own country directly, many may not understand this troubling fact. But, for now, it is important to hold on to our compassion and our humanity. To truly overcome terrorism we must look beyond that statistic to the millions of people affected by these awful events daily. We must remember that if something like terrorism negatively impacts one of us, it impacts all of us.

Everyone should feel safe – wherever they are 

At the end of the day we are all human beings who deserve the right to feel safe in our own homes. Until tragedy strikes us personally, it may not be something we can truly understand, but to overcome this major adversity in the modern day the most important thing to do is try.