Tragedy struck the campus of Northern Illinois University yesterday when former-student Stephen Kazmierczak opened fire on a geology class, killing five people before taking his own life. Witnesses said Kazmierczak, dressed in black and wearing a stocking cap, emerged from a side door on the stage of the lecture hall and opened fire just as class was about to end. Kazmierczak was carrying three handguns and a shotgun, all of which he purchased legally from a store in Champaign-Urbana. The shooting at NIU marks the third in a series of campus shootings, and bears frightening resemblance to the Virginia Tech shooting from last spring. Like last spring, this shooting will again bring intensified scrutiny to mental health services and campus safety policies at college and universities as well as sparking heated debates over gun control. Tremendous support for the students at NIU has been pouring out from students across the country. Over 40 Facebook groups have been created, dedicating their support and prayers to the victims of the shooting. NIU will hold a candlelight vigil tonight on campus in honor of the victims.

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Read this editorial from Northern Illinois University’s newspaper, The Northern Star