After the happenings of this weekend, I feel too strongly to sit by quietly and let the Halloween melee go uncommented upon. I am a second year student, and a second year resident of the 6600 block of Del Playa Drive. I was here on Halloween last year, and I remember thinking that was insane. Friday night has changed my mind.
I live in a house with 14 other people, and all of us were shocked, saddened and dismayed to walk out of our house Saturday morning and see that not only was our street in shambles, but our cars had been destroyed as well.
Drunken party-seekers had climbed atop our vehicles as they struggled to get a glimpse of the packed street; as well as the two ladies lacking both common sense and morals who had hopped atop a white van parked in the street to make out with one another. Saturday morning, the evidence of these people on our cars was undeniable, both in the muddy footprints covering our hoods and roofs and the shattered windshields that had most likely been assaulted by a drunk’s knee or foot.
First and foremost, the damage to our cars was not done quickly. It was ongoing. People were standing on cars for half an hour to an hour, and not just the ones in our driveway. Our neighbors and friends across the street and next door also had damage done to their vehicles.
This is the question I pose: Why is it that if you accidentally walk out of a party with a beer, there never fails to be a police officer on hand to write you a ticket, but when there are thirty people standing on top of cars, there isn’t a single one around to help?
Where were the officers when a drunken sorority girl tried to assault me for not letting her into my home? I’ll wager a guess; they were probably down the block, out of the thick of things, writing people tickets for being “drunk in public.” It is both frustrating and disconcerting that people were arrested for breaking the open container law and for being minors in possession, yet not single person was asked to stop, cited or arrested for causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to our cars.
Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the things that the police officers stand for. However, they are not serving and protecting Isla Vista–they are harassing and hindering. I also say this not as the bitter recipient of any of the aforementioned tickets, but simply as a law-abiding resident who finds it ridiculous that at the age of 21 I can neither consume a beer in my driveway nor play music after midnight on the weekends.
It is a well-known fact that I.V. residents like to party. However, most of us not only party, but have jobs, carry full class loads, and still manage to graduate.
Isla Vista is a community. We may be a community of rowdy college kids, but overall, there is a sense of unity and pride in our little town.
We are a very open, welcoming, laid-back town. A place where you can drive in for a weekend, not know anybody, and not only be welcomed into any party you walk into, but likely be offered a couch to sleep on if you need one. However, it is this welcoming attitude that makes us easily exploited, as many of us feel we were on Friday.
Saturday night was a perfect example of Isla Vista life; lots of people out and about, party-hopping, socializing in the streets, and huge groups of cops wandering the streets with nothing to do, hoping someone will stumble in front of them or walk by with a cup of beer.
My roommates and I, whose house bore a sheet spray-painted with “GO HOME!” all day Saturday and Sunday, couldn’t help but wonder, where were these guys last night?
My respect for the foot patrol who would rather write me a ticket for public urination than protecting myself and my belongings, is limited.