Pratt: Not In Our Front Yard
Yesterday, the Local blog broke the sad news that as of next month Pratt will begin enforcing its longstanding-but-long-ignored rule against loitering by non-school-related people. (Like one of the Brownstoner progeny above shown in happier times on a campus-trashing wilding spree.) Community members will still be able to cut through the campus on foot but…
Yesterday, the Local blog broke the sad news that as of next month Pratt will begin enforcing its longstanding-but-long-ignored rule against loitering by non-school-related people. (Like one of the Brownstoner progeny above shown in happier times on a campus-trashing wilding spree.) Community members will still be able to cut through the campus on foot but they won’t be able to sit and admire the sculpture. A spokeswoman for the school said the policy does not allow the use of the campus grounds as a public park or playground. Most of the commenters on the Local aren’t happy about this and we heard from one community resident that a group called the Clinton Hill Action Committee is forming to try to get Pratt to reconsider its decision; if you are interested you can contact the organizers at clintonhillac@gmail.com.
Pratt Rolls Up the Welcome Mat [NYT/Local]
Maybe they’re concerned some irresponsible drunken jackasses will go around banging on campus doors in the middle of the evening. You never know.
Yeah, I get that but as CGUps so nicely said the response doesn’t fit the concern. The mugging happened half a mile from campus. What does shutting the gates down have to do with anything. I mean, the actual campus is one of the safest places in the neighborhood given how few points of entry there are and how well guarded they are. Shutting the gates in response to an off campus mugging just doesn’t make sense and will only increase the sense of isolation the students feel and the resentment of the surrounding community. Short sighted to say the least.
True Wasder – but the beating did happen in the Clinton Hill community, the same community that uses the campus to loiter. Not saying I agree with it, or that it will deter anymore muggings from happening. I read this as:
Dear Clinton Hill,
FU – you beat our student now you can’t come over to play anymore.
Love,
Pratt
meant to say more campus security in the area. also with students living in off campus housing, it’s more difficult to protect them. sad reality. at my school nestled in far edge of harlem, crime was significantly less (practically non-existent) in the on campus housing versus off campus.
Infinitejester: how did you get from children and community members being prohibitted from playing on the lawn to porno-viewing pervs in the library? Are they really the same in your mind?
Chortik: not sure how a street assault of a Pratt student will be avoided by preventing me and my family from sitting on the grass. And since I will still be allowed to walk through the campus, this doesn’t really address safety on campus.
If Pratt were really worried about safety, it would simply close its campus altogether. The problem with that is that Pratt occupies several blocks right in the middle of a neighborhood, including some “demapped” streets. A Fortress Pratt gives an incorrect and hostile impression to Pratt members and neighbors alike. Clinton Hill is not that dangerous, and Pratt should be going in the other direction, inviting the community in rather than turning its back on the neighborhood. What a PR disaster with very little gain. Again, given that the fences will be open (good), but the stays brief (bad?), it is not clear what Pratt gains but a black eye.
but the crime isn’t happening inside the gates, it’s happening on the street. the response doesn’t fit the concerns. what would make more sense is to have more campus security presence. i feel terrible for that poor kid who got beaten up but i don’t think that disallowing people to enter the main campus area would have stopped it. if i recall correctly, he didn’t get beaten up on the actual campus.
Wasder: What happened is that Pratt student who was mugged and so badly beaten recently. The incident may have occurred off-campus, but it was just the kind of incident that sets off alarm bells among college administrators for whom crime (and the perception of crime) is a major “marketing” issue. Better to cordon off the campus and provide the illusion of safety than leave prospective students (or more likely their parents) in fear.
“Think this is in response to that savage beating of the Pratt student?”
I guess, but said beating took place quite a few blocks from campus so hard to know how that really has anything to do with it. If a Pratt student gets assaulted in Williamsburg are they going to shut down the campus?
“as long as they don’t ‘loiter’ once inside they’re okay right?”
Yep, but the loitering was kind of the attraction. I used to go there with my daughter and play on the grass and check out the sculpture etc.
“I can’t imagine what happened to change their attitude so drastically”
Muggings?