They Refuse to be Victims

In just a few days in Blacksburg, Virginia, I witnessed sorrow, pain and the triumph of the human spirit.

I relayed this story Monday night on our 11 o'clock news. I was waiting - outside the hotel where victims' families were being sequestered - to interview a Virginia Tech student from the Maryville area.

Two adults were also waiting near me. I didn't speak to them because I didn't want to invade their privacy. I could sense their sadness.

Suddenly a young man appeared, wearing a Virginia Tech sweatshirt. The two adults and the young man never said a word. They just held each other for a very long time.

I could see tears welling up in their eyes...It seemed obvious that these adults had lost a child...and the young man had lost a friend. It was unbearably sad.

Tuesday afternoon's convocation brought thousands of students, alumni and supporters together. The President was there. And many other dignitaries too. The emotional outpouring was intense.

But ask most students what they will remember and they will say the words of Knoxville-born Nikki Giovanni, a University Distinguished Professor, poet, and activist:
"We will continue to invent the future through our blood and and through all our sadness ... We are the Hokies."
Tuesday night there was a candlelight vigil. More than 20,000 people attended. It was a somber affair. There were plenty of tears. But I sensed another feeling that night, a sense of empowerment.

Those who attended had decided that a deranged killer - who had senselessly taken 32 lives - would not make them victims too.

A Virginia Tech official said to the crowd:
"We are Virginia Tech. We will recover. And we will survive!"
And the crowd cheered.Some might see that as inappropriate, cheering at such a terrible time. But I took the cheer to be a sign of respect to those who had died and a "go to hell" to the monster who'd taken their lives.

It seemed perfectly appropriate to me.