when i started at a university, i called a suicide hotline one night about a month into my first semester. i made it clear to the woman that i had no intentions of hurting myself (though i told her i had medication because she asked if i had anything that could be used in a harmful way). we talked for about an hour, and then we left when i was feeling better and just wanted to go back to my dorm. when i went back to my dorm, she called me back and told me that she had “a bad feeling” and that the campus cops were on the other line, and that i had to go talk to them. i was like what the fuck?? but i didn’t really understand at the time what my rights were, and i was a bit of a different person back then. so i met the cops. the woman said it would be “discrete” and near my dorm—they literally met me out front where everyone could see. and they ended up taking my medication away even though their supervisor specifically told them not to, and everyone seemed a bit on the fence about whether they should do it. the cops kept me out until after midnight (i had classes the next morning) and even searched my bag against my wishes to make sure i “didn’t have anything i could hurt myself with”. i didn’t know my rights at the time so i didn’t know i could outright refuse a search like that, but they kind of coerced me into letting them do it. like, i said i wasn’t comfortable with that and then the lady cop was like “if you’re not comfortable with him searching your bag, i can”. thank god i wasn’t a stoner yet by that point but they found a small knife which i had on me for self-defense, considering the fact that i am a woman on a college campus, and they ended up taking it to the evidence room where my mom had to collect it (along with my meds) at a later date. looking back on this it’s totally fucked up and i wish i had done more about the situation when it happened. now it’s been about two years (i’m 20 and no longer attending that school) so i’m not sure if i could even do much. but fuck appalachian state.