The mugging of two SMU students (and shooting of one) this weekend was a tragic event.

While very few of us can say that we have been in the same situation, we all can and should empathize with the victims. We don’t live in a bubble, and we should never take our safety completely for granted. For that reason, The Daily Campus decided to publish the names of the two women who were attacked.

Our policy has always been to publish all names of any subject of a story unless that person has been a victim of a sexual assault or is a minor. Whenever we have not provided names outside of those circumstances, the sole reason has been that we were unable to find them. In this case, the names of the women involved were provided on the police report submitted to the Dallas Police Department.

Yesterday’s story on the shooting prompted a flood of phone calls, letters and e-mails – some level-headed counter arguments and others more threatening in nature – contesting the decision.

We were told that by using the names in the story we were being unethical or unprofessional. We disagree. As the newspaper of record for the SMU community, we strive to be as professional as possible in our coverage. Most of our staff has some aspiration toward future involvement in the news media, and these are the types of decisions we will likely face in our future careers. By deciding to use the names, we were following the guidelines that newspapers such as The Dallas Morning News, The Washington Post and The New York Times use to guide their coverage of similar events.

We were told that by using the names in the story we would be endangering the lives of the victims. We disagree. By using their names we hope that we can ensure the safety of many more. Had the story begun, “Two SMU students were robbed . . . ,” the story’s reality would have been lost. It is important that our Hilltop community be aware that we live inside of a big city where crime is a threat.

We were told that by using the names in the story we would be exploiting the victims in an attempt to increase readership. We disagree. By putting a face and a name on this story, the horror of the situation becomes more of a reality. If retelling the experiences of these women causes just a handful of students to take greater note of their surroundings, the decision to print their names was worth it.

We were told that by using the names in the story we would ruin the victims’ senior years. We disagree. Two black males in their mid-20’s driving a white Cadillac are to blame for that.