We should not be sympathizing with Abdul Razak Ali Artan

It has been a week since the attack on OSU and campus is still buzzing about Abdul Razak Ali Artan’s actions. The Tuesday following the attack, the community gathered for a #BuckeyeStrong Together rally. Professors have addressed it in classes, sometimes leading to group discussions. Many student organizations have also gotten involved through discussions or events.

On Wednesday, according to The Lantern, the OSU Coalition for Black Liberation gathered on the Oval to talk about what happened last Monday and to continue their two-month tradition of reading a list of names of people of color who have been killed by police. But this time, the list was different — it had Artan’s name on it.

Photo Credit: The Lantern

The Lantern said those “in attendance said they did not condone his actions, but some said they have compassion for the attacker, who expressed feelings of anxiety related to how he was perceived as a Muslim.”

There is nothing wrong with holding an event like this. Everyone is entitled to his or her own beliefs and if these weekly list readings are what helps the members of the Coalition for Black Liberation express their beliefs with others who share them, then good for them. But adding Artan’s name to the list, in my opinion, is crossing the line.

Artan attacked our campus. He drove a car into pedestrians and got out of that car with a knife in his hand with the intention of hurting other people. Was he a human being? Yes. But he was a human being who aimed to harm other human beings he should not be honored or memorialized in a positive light. The only reason that Artan was shot was because he did not release the knife when Officer Alan Horujuko asked him to. If Artan had cooperated with the law, he would still be alive. If Artan had never attacked the campus, he would still be alive.

By adding Artan to their list, the Coalition for Black Liberation is making this an issue of race, but this is not about race or religion — it is about safety. The same rules would have applied if Artan were white. Ohio law states “the preservation of human life is of the highest value in the State of Ohio. Therefore, employees must have an objectively reasonable belief deadly force is necessary to protect life before the use of deadly force. Deadly force may be used only under the following circumstances: To defend themselves from serious physical injury or death; or to defend another person from serious physical injury or death.”

There is no reference to the race, ethnicity, beliefs, etc. of the person who the staff member may use the force on. The law only says if a police officer believes that other people are at risk of injury or death – which they were because Artan still had the knife in his hands – then he or she has the right to use deadly force. No matter if the holder of the weapon is white, black, purple, green, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu. If he or she is a threat to others’ lives, the police officer has the right to kill him or her.

Shooting Artan may have prevented many more injuries and even possible deaths from occurring. There were already eleven people on their way to the hospital at that point. What were the police supposed to do? Just stand there and wait to see what Artan would do next? At moments like that, you have to do damage control. Of course death is far from ideal, but isn’t it better to lose one life than to lose multiple lives?

OSU’s Coalition for Black Liberation is not the only group who has adopted the position of sympathy towards Artan. Assistant Director of Residence Life Stephanie Clemons Thomspon sent out this controversial Facebook post regarding his death:

Having a “troubled life” or, as stated in The Lantern article, “feelings of anxiety relating to [being perceived] as a Muslim” does not justify Artan’s actions. It is true that no one should have to feel that way — no one should be ashamed of his or her religious beliefs. But nothing justifies threatening the lives of other people — and not just threatening, but committing an act of violence against other people.

Advocates of Black Lives Matter, are fighting for and promoting equality, but they are giving people of color special treatment here. If this had been an attack by a white man and he had been shot, there would be no Facebook posts like this. No one would even be considering that he was a Buckeye or a “member of our family.” Everyone would just be relieved that the threat of the attacker is gone. But, according to Thompson and the actions of the Coalition of Black Liberation, we are not allowed to feel that way because the attacker was a person of color and he was Muslim. Is that not hypocritical?

There is no reason for race and religion to be considered here. The death of Artan was about keeping campus safe and saving the members of the Ohio State community from further injuries and/or death. It is organizations like the Coalition of Black Liberation, movements like Black Lives Matter, and people like Stephanie Clemons Thomspon that make the death of Artan and events similar to it matters of race and religion, which is ridiculous. Politics have no place here and I think we should all be grateful that Officer Horujko took action to keep our campus safe.

Featured image photo credit: The Lantern