Augusta University sociology students chalked the sidewalks on the Summerville Campus at Allgood Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 31.
This sociology class project shows the number of murders in the United States in 2020.
Kim Davies, Pamplin College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences dean and the author of a textbook focusing on homicide, has conducted this activity for the last 15 years to bring attention to the violent crime rates in the U.S.
“I do it every year I teach the class because I found it’s a really good activity that students remember and makes them think about how much murder there really is,” she said. “I don’t want people to be afraid, but I want people to be aware and thinking.”
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According to FBI data from 2020, the numbers of murders in the United States increased by nearly 30% in 2020 compared 2019. It is also expected that the number may be even higher in 2021.
Jaylon Hayward, a junior, says this assignment really shows the big picture.
“This assignment puts it in perspective,” he said. “You hear the number, but you can’t really picture the number cause it’s a lot. The tally marks here, seeing it in perspective, really shows how many it is and brings awareness to it.”
Another student, Kalie Smith, spoke on the importance of people not letting their emotions lead to this type of situation.
“You can just argue and then walk away,” Smith said. “Some people I guess let their emotions get the best of them and that’s why it probably leads to murder.”
Students are also given the freedom of expression to write messages, expressing how this activity or topic makes them feel.
“I give them a lot of freedom. We do a tick mark for every murder and then they can have artistic freedom to make messages they want to make,” Davies said.
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Davies plans to continue to do this activity every year as long as the students are comfortable with it. She thinks this kind of activity has an impact on the students and teaches them some valuable lessons.
“I think they take it to heart; I think it really impacts them to do this,” Davies said. “I teach them that if you care about something, you can get attention for what you care about if you come up with clever ways to do it. This is non-violent protesting in a way; it is bringing attention on something that is important to me and to them, and I think that it’s a valuable lesson.”
Chris Rickerson is a staff reporter covering Columbia County government and general assignment topics for The Augusta Press. Reach him at chris@theaugustapress.com.
