Christian Headlines Blog Christian Blog and Commentary

Get guidance on Bible study from C.S. Lewis - Free Course!

Ohio State Staffer Sympathizes with Attacker: 'Think of the Pain He Must Have Been In'

  • Veronica Neffinger

    Veronica Neffinger wrote her first poem at age seven and went on to study English in college, focusing on 18th century literature. When she is not listening to baseball games, enjoying the…

    More
  • Updated Nov 30, 2016

A staff member at Ohio State University, where an attack was carried out Monday morning, has expressed sympathy for the perpetrator of the attack.

According to The Daily Caller, Ohio State’s Assistant Director of Residence Life, Stephanie Clemons Thompson, posted:

“DO NOT SHARE THIS POST

Abdul Razak Ali Artan was a BUCKEYE, a member of our family. If you think it is okay to celebrate his death and/or share a photo of his dead body and I see it in my timeline I will unfriend you. I pray you find compassion for his life, as troubled as it clearly was. Think of the pain he must have been in to feel that his actions were the only solution. We must come together in this time of tragedy. #BuckeyeStrong #BlackLivesMatter #SayHisName

DO NOT SHARE THIS POST”

Clemons apparently recognized the controversial nature of her post, and thus told her friends not to share it. The post has nevertheless found its way around the internet.

Artan was killed by campus police after he drove his vehicle into a group of students and then began attacking them with a butcher knife.

Shortly before carrying out his attack, Artan posted:

“I can’t take it anymore. America! Stop interfering with other countries, especially the Muslim Ummah. We are not weak. We are not weak, remember that. If you want us Muslims to stop carrying lone wolf attacks, then make peace. We will not let you sleep unless you give peace to the Muslims.”

Artan reportedly came to the U.S. as a refugee from Somalia. He became a legal permanent resident in 2014.

 

Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Publication date: November 30, 2016