Move Away From the Entrance

By Gabrielle Hollows

Getting past the front doors into the college is like trying to navigate through a misty jungle. You find yourself filling up with anxiety every time you get to the school gate. Not only do people stare intensely at the passers by but also they refuse to move out of the way. There is absolutely no reason for the entrance to be blocked the way it is, and it is down right rude that there is no acknowledgement of the people trying to make it through the doors. It is not just people trying to take cover from the rain that block the entrance but it is also used by students who want to smoke in a sheltered area.
“Why is it so difficult for a person to move out of the way?” I ask. One student, a smoker, replies, “Because there is nowhere else to go when it is raining”. This is so; there is nowhere, with cover, for students to go and have a cigarette. But this is a matter for smokers to take up, and it is no excuse for blocking the entrance, which leaves students and faculty members no option, but to elbow their way into the building. Even with a polite, “excuse me”, there is no budging a person from the entrance. It is not an outrageous request to ask a person to move out of the way so another can get through. To make matters worse you not only have to fight to get in but also you will get a gust of several peoples cigarette smoke in your face. This is not a pleasant trip to be done everyday and is about time that there was a change.
This is not only a matter of getting into the building but also a health and safety one too. It would be a disaster waiting to happen if there was a fire in the building, and people continue to linger in the doorway it would hold up a line in the foyer and this could have serious consequences for people trying to escape. It would be inexcusable if people couldn’t exit the building because other students, selfishly, were blocking the door.
This letter should not be taken as the opening salvo of an anti-smoking campaign because it is anybody’s right to smoke. However, it is also everyone’s right to walk in a smoke-free environment. Second-hand smoke causes many health problems just as well as firsthand smoke. According to the National Cancer Institute “Approximately 3,000 lung cancer deaths occur each year among adult non-smokers in the United States as a result of exposure to second-hand smoke” (www.cancer.gov). Second-hand smokers are not the only ones who should keep this statistic in their heads but so should the smokers. By just moving you can help your fellow classmates and other occupants of the building who are second-hand smokers everyday just because people are unwilling to move.
From an aesthetic point of view, the front entrance does not look attractive with crowds of people surrounding the doorway smoking in the faces of others. We are very fortunate to be using a beautiful building that has survived wars and revolutions over the years. We should not spoil its appeal by clouding up prospective students’ views on choosing this college over others just because it looks like an ashtray.
There are designated areas for people to smoke and there have been bins provided to stub the cigarettes out in. It is about time that students start using these areas instead of blocking the entrance. Spring is on its way and soon it will be summer, so the benches and the tables around the front of the building are perfect places for a social smoke. Be aware of people around you—if someone looks like they are having trouble entering the building, don’t just ignore them, move out of the way.