Imagine going from dancing inside a nightclub to fearing for your life, trying to take cover from gunshots. One tragic night marks an end for some of those who go out clubbing.
Tallahassee has two well-known schools that bring attention to the capital city. The type of attention brought upon this college town has a positive and negative impact.
College students come from all over the nation to attend one of the major universities, Florida State University or Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University.
When a school is in a city, there are often nightclubs for those college students in the same town. Nightclubs are entertainment venues that bring together people in one space to enjoy music with a mixture of alcoholic beverages.
Bajas is an excellent example of a nightclub in Tallahassee. However, Bajas nightclub has recently caught itself in a gun violence incident.
The Instagram page Wuzhadnintally just posted a recent video that went viral and gained over 90,000 views. It shows people ducking and running in Bajas because of a fight that broke out that allegedly turned into shots fired.
In the posted video, folks can see the faces of people scared for their safety and lives. The audio is also available to hear the screams of individuals in panic and confusion. Chairs and tables are used for shield protection as folks try to take cover. The video also shows people climbing over railings, pilling on top of one another as they rush through the exit doors.
When situations like these happen, it gives college students a red flag pinpointing why they do not go out. This incident is a prime example of why students do not go out to nightclubs.
Jamaria Gilbert, a first-year FAMU student, explains why she does not go out anywhere anyway.
“It is very upsetting as a college student because I cannot go out and unwind after a long week of classes,” Gilbert said.
“I am going to put my safety first, and since Bajas is being made into an unsafe environment, I am left stuck in my dorm, unable to have fun.”
Gilbert has little to no interest in going out, unsure about her safety based on the alleged Bajas shooting. The nightlife in Tally is becoming lame, more dangerous, and repetitive as no one can go out knowing they may not return in peace.
A scary event such as this one may trigger some of those who suffer PTSD from a comparable situation.
Dymund Thomas is a senior who does not go out because it is unsafe. However, also shut the door permanently on the idea of nightclubs after watching the video from Bajas.
“This video makes me feel like staying home is the better option because I do not like large crowds, and clubs usually have limited exit points, making it harder to leave in an emergency,” Thomas said.
“I am growing past the party life. It is repetitive and hard to genuinely enjoy when you look around every other second to check your surroundings. I enjoy peace, solitude, and the comfort of being home.”
In a large college town like Tallahassee, there would be security guards that strictly enforce protection and ensure a safe environment at nightclubs. However, frequent questions led to asking where the enforcement was when doing pat-down searches of everyone before entering the club.
Jaylin Hankerson-Strappy voiced his opinion on why he does not go out anyway.
“I do not like being in a high-density environment with alcohol being distributed with lack of security to impose my safety as well as everyone else’s,” Strappy said.
“I have stopped going to block parties because it got shot up and took a toll on my experience of going out. So, seeing a facility like Bajas with a roof and four corners get shot up makes me not want to go out at all.”
The more scary incidents occur in nightclubs, the more people see this as an unsafe environment and cannot socialize and interact without fear.