JON HELGASON

UA President Peter Likins speaks to Pakistani students yesterday in the Center for English as a Second Language building. Likins urged students to report incidents of prejudice to UAPD.

Friday September 28, 2001

Administrators tell students to avoid confrontation

Pakistani students gathered with campus leaders yesterday to discuss personal safety and class-realted concerns since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Event organizer Adeel Elahi, president of the Pakistan Students Association, said he hoped to open the campus community's eyes to the problems he and others have experienced.

Imaad Malik, a management information systems sophomore, described a violent situation he found himself in recently.

While shopping with a friend, a man approached him and asked if he was Muslim. Malik answered yes, and the man proceeded to follow him through the store carrying a knife.

After dealing with who he called an unsympathetic manager in the store, he called 911.

Malik then became even more frustrated as he waited 20 minutes for an officer to arrive.

"I could never have imagined anything like this happening to me," he said. "You only see this happen in the news."

Other students described problems they had with violence, but no one was aware of violent incidents on the Universty of Arizona campus.

Tony Daykin, Chief of University of Arizona Police Department, advised students to avoid retaliation when placed in a dangerous situation.

"You have to do an escalation of things you think you have to do to remain safe," he said.

Daykin advised the students to be aware of their surroundings and to travel in groups.

He also said they should call 911 if they feel they are in danger, and if they have non-urgent incidents to report, to call UAPD's automated tip line at 626-0066.

UA President Peter Likins attended the meeting and listened to students' concerns, particularly concerning the attacks' effects on their studies.

"Many students are traumatized," he said. "I'm traumatized. This has been one of the most difficult times in my professional career, and I'm not directly involved in this."

Likins said he, the provost and university deans asked faculty to be sensitive to students' situations.

"We're trying hard to help students," he said. "But we can't solve everything. I can't change your grade."

He did, however, advise students to talk to their deans, department heads and instructors about any problems they may be having.

"Until Sept. 11, I imagine you could go though life without anyone looking twice at you," Likins said, urging students to ignore offenders they come across. "I want to help you. I want you to stay. And if you do leave, then come back."