Regardless of who did it, the damage has been done. Recently, the school officials have discovered multiple acts of student vandalism in the bathrooms, resulting in sewer blockages and thousands of dollars worth of repairs. The Algonquin community is paying the price for actions that were caused by one or a few irresponsible students. Vandalism has harmful effects, and students tend to either forget how their actions can affect others or they see it and say nothing, which can lead to our current problems.

Students have been faced with clogged toilets, flooding and other unsanitary situations, like feminie hygiene products on the floor or food left in the bathroom, due to the inconsideration or bad intentions of others. The vandalism doesn’t stop there. Three weeks ago, urinal partitions were ripped off the wall in two separate bathrooms. Last year, toilet seats were unscrewed and placed in various other locations in the bathroom, according to multiple social media posts. Two years ago, a shooting threat was found written on a bathroom stall. This is not the typical  graffiti on a stall door. This is reckless vandalism by offenders who will also feel the outcomes of their pranks. Many of these vandals have not faced consequences for the financial implications of their actions and for the burden they have placed on the school community, especially the custodians.

If you are considering or if you are currently vandalizing Algonquin’s bathrooms, think twice. You are not the only one that has to use them. Daily, hundreds of students will use these bathrooms; you are quite frankly doing everyone a favor if they can walk in and not worry about missing a toilet seat, reading a threatening message or flooding the bathroom when they flush. It is unfair that everyone has to deal with the immaturity of such actions. When a select few commit these reckless acts, all students are given a bad reputation, even if we are just as disgusted and upset as the faculty.

However, these vandals are able to remain anonymous because the few that know their identity do not report them. If we want to eliminate these problems for good, we cannot just be bystanders. Although it may not seem cool to tell the administration what goes on in the bathroom, it can save the entire Algonquin community from having to deal with the horrible consequences of these bathroom antics.

This unsigned editorial reflects the views of The Harbinger’s editorial board.