Thousands of people participated in a memorial at UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday in honor of the six victims of the deadly student rampage on Friday.
On the “Day of Mourning and Reflection,” as many as 20,000 people attended the service at Harder Stadium that was organized by students, staff and faculty. Classes were canceled on Tuesday.
“All died much too young but it’s important that we do not let the arithmetic of this atrocity define them,” said UC President Janet Napolitano, according to FOX LA. Napolitano had previously ordered flags at all 10 UC campuses lowered to half-staff to honor the victims.
The father of one of the victims, 20-year-old Christopher Michaels-Martinez, also spoke to the crowd, at one point leading a chant of “Not one more,” in reference to such mass killings.
“It’s almost become a normal thing for us to accept this,” he said. “It’s not normal … life doesn’t have to be like this.”
The shooter, Elliot Rodger, fatally stabbed his roommates and then went on a shooting rampage in the Isla Vista community near the campus, before apparently fatally shooting himself. Another 13 people were injured in the attack.
Hundreds of people previously gathered at vigils over the weekend and earlier this week, and the university has made counselors widely available. A memorial wall was also set up by students Tuesday on campus.
[FOX]
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