One of Us

The University is a vast, at times disconnected complex of institutions and communities, but what transpired Friday night can be said simply: We’ve lost one of our own.

Many of us did not know Minghui Yu, a young Chinese Ph.D. candidate in statistics and a teaching fellow at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. An award-winning student, Yu also worked on the board of the University’s Chinese Students and Scholars Association and joined other organizations as well. Those who knew him now grieve for a lost friend whom they described as creative, gifted, and always smiling. Regardless of the issues dividing those on Columbia’s campus and in the surrounding community, all of us were marked by the sadness of Friday’s tragedy.

Regardless of whether Yu’s family is able to come to the University in the near future—visa issues still leave this question up in the air—all of us should take a moment to note the loss of a fellow, even if privately. While they acknowledged the tragedy of the moment, many commenters online focused on the question of neighborhood safety, the unnamed youth who was arrested as a suspect, and broad proclamations on the sociology of crime and crime prevention. Especially since details of what happened Friday night are not yet clear—and may well never become clear—the focus, at least at this evening’s vigil and in the immediate days to come, should be on Minghui Yu.