We all have our own opinions on why Columbine might of happened or maybe how it could’ve been stopped. I may think one thing and you might think something completely different. The point is every opinion is valid as long as there is facts supporting it. This paper is here to inform you about the theories people have come up with and debunk theories.
To start off with the popular theories let's start with the most popular, they were bullied. They were bullied and there is a lot of evidence supporting this fact, however they weren’t bullied as much as you think. Sure there was the normal high school bullying that you see is really bad 90s teen movies, they were pushed against lockers and called “fag” and things among that nature (Briggs “A Boy With Many Sides”). That really was the extent of their bullying to be perfectly honest. Eric did write in his journal once that he never get invited anywhere and that it wasn’t his fault because they had his number and they could've called him, he finished the statement with “don’t invite the weird Eric kid” showing that he thought the kids thought lower of him than he would like.
To start off with the popular theories let's start with the most popular, they were bullied. They were bullied and there is a lot of evidence supporting this fact, however they weren’t bullied as much as you think. Sure there was the normal high school bullying that you see is really bad 90s teen movies, they were pushed against lockers and called “fag” and things among that nature (Briggs “A Boy With Many Sides”). That really was the extent of their bullying to be perfectly honest. Eric did write in his journal once that he never get invited anywhere and that it wasn’t his fault because they had his number and they could've called him, he finished the statement with “don’t invite the weird Eric kid” showing that he thought the kids thought lower of him than he would like.
Another big one is music. Now I’m going to get a bit personal here to help debunk this theory. “Marilyn Manson caused another terrorist attack!” “Marilyn Manson caused a kid to go crazy and kill himself!” “Marilyn Manson made my kid cut himself” “Marilyn Manson started a cult for the 100th time this week” everything seems to be his fault. We ignore the real issue in those statement which I will get to later. The thing is Dylan and Eric didn’t even listen to Marilyn Manson so there's that debunked (Columbine Music). They did listen to KMFDM, you can see that in their writings and the clothes they wear. Although the band has some music that’s angry sounding the lyrics are very anti-war which means they are very anti-violence. I listen to the exact same music as them and I do not have any thoughts or desire to shoot up my school or anything like that.
Was it because they are white? That’s racists, if you think that you have some kind of internalized racism and actually Dylan was part Jewish. Virginia Tech ring a bell? Well that was committed by someone who is not white. Well if not, was it because they were men? That’s sexist. According to Peter Langman Ph.D in the article “School Shootings Are Not White Males” In 1996 (3 years before Columbine) 19-year old Jillian Spencer who was trained Army Reserve Sharp Shooter opened fire on the students at Penn State University. He also states that “Let's Not be Blinded By The Stereotype Of School Shooters--It Could Be Deadly” which is true. If we keep the idea that only white males shoot up schools then we will be focusing on them and not other at risk students.
Was it because they are white? That’s racists, if you think that you have some kind of internalized racism and actually Dylan was part Jewish. Virginia Tech ring a bell? Well that was committed by someone who is not white. Well if not, was it because they were men? That’s sexist. According to Peter Langman Ph.D in the article “School Shootings Are Not White Males” In 1996 (3 years before Columbine) 19-year old Jillian Spencer who was trained Army Reserve Sharp Shooter opened fire on the students at Penn State University. He also states that “Let's Not be Blinded By The Stereotype Of School Shooters--It Could Be Deadly” which is true. If we keep the idea that only white males shoot up schools then we will be focusing on them and not other at risk students.
This one is my favourite, they were part of the trench coat mafia which was a cult of homosexual men who wear gothic makeup. This one makes me laugh every single time I hear it because it’s so hateful and informed. Have you read Eric’s journals? He hates homesexuals, unless it’s some werid self hatred thing but from what I learned about him he thinks he is superior to everyone else so he would be pro-gay if he was gay. Unless Dylan was hiding something, he tried really hard to get a girlfriend all the time so I feel someone who was gay wouldn’t try that hard to get with someone of the opposite sex unless they were trying to hide something. I feel he would've said that in his journal entries if he really was gay. And no way they would wear makeup. So there’s that debunked. I feel this is also a harmful admission because it promotes homophobia which is really bad issue already and this is just fueling it. This is also harmful because it blames the style which hurts people like me who love the gothic style and has no desire to kill people, I’m forced to wear other clothing because I don’t want to be seen as a school shooter and I can’t express myself. We already deal with people accusing us of worshiping satan we don’t need to be accused of being school shooters.
Here's the real issue because no one can debunk it, mental heath. “Shhhhhhh don’t bring up that” people say whether it’s them changing the subject or making up an excuse to leave the conversation. Well this is the real issue. This is important to talk about. People who have mental health issues are scared to talk about them because people see them as freaks and mistakes. This makes them less likely to seek help. Let’s bring out one of the most notorious serial killers, Jeffrey Dahmer. We are all like screw that guy, he’s freak. I mean I’m not because I understand the issue, and feel a lot of empathy for the guy, I do not excuse what he did at the same time I still feel that empathy. He dealt which loneliness and the fear of people leaving him. I had the same fear actually it’s probably bigger than my fear of bridges (which I got from the movie Shrek which is just???) unlike Dahmer I can cope with that fear better because I’m getting help. Dahmer probably had a ton of mental health issues that he was scared to get help with. This stigma around mental health is the reason attacks like Columbine and what Dahmer did happen. Now, we know that Eric was on meds for his anger and that means there was probably a mental health issue around that (“Columbine Shooter Was Prescribed Anti-Depressant”). Experts say Dylan had depression. The Wonder Years song “Local Man Ruins Everything” says it best “it’s not about forcing Happiness, it’s about not letting sadness win” or the line “I’m not a self help book, I’m just a f****d up kid” I feel no one really understand that about depression nor do they understand that it will end. In Another The Wonder Years song, You’re Not salinger, Get over it “Just ‘cause we’re down doesn’t mean we have to stay there”. I feel if we looked into the boys more we’d find other issues. Mental health is a reason no one can debunk.
Now how could it have been stopped? Well there is an endless number of things that could've been done to stop it like there is an endless number of reasons it could of happened. I don’t think any of these are debunkable. I’m only doing popular theories and the ones I think are most truthful.
The parents could of checked their rooms. In Columbine by Dave Cullen he states Eric’s parents looked through Eric’s room for alcohol after the conflict but Eric hid it so good that they couldn’t find it. Dylan was never searched, it wouldn’t of done any good to search his room because Eric had most of the weapons. If the parents checked their rooms they would found bombs and guns which would of gotten them arrested and saved so many lives and stopped many more school shootings from happening.
If people took a moment to make them feel human it might of given them a reason to not kill anyone. At Columbine it seemed that Eric and Dylan didn’t feel humanized. This in turn made them feel like the other kids aren’t human therefore they lost a lot of feeling for them. Taking a minute to make someone feel good could have affects you couldn’t even imagine because you have no clue what is going on in someone's life.
Finally the school could of done a lot more to make the school safer and a better environment. They school could of got a really good therapist and had Eric and Dylan see them. The school could of had more anti-bullying assemblies. The school could of had stricter punishments for bullying and more people looking out for it. The school could of done so much to stop this attack.
We have to use this knowledge to help stop future attacks, I feel we are looking for the wrong red flags and treating them in the wrong way. Hopefully, this informed people on the real issues and how harmful it is to place false stereotypes on people. Hopefully I changed your opinion and helped shed some light on the real issues.
Here's the real issue because no one can debunk it, mental heath. “Shhhhhhh don’t bring up that” people say whether it’s them changing the subject or making up an excuse to leave the conversation. Well this is the real issue. This is important to talk about. People who have mental health issues are scared to talk about them because people see them as freaks and mistakes. This makes them less likely to seek help. Let’s bring out one of the most notorious serial killers, Jeffrey Dahmer. We are all like screw that guy, he’s freak. I mean I’m not because I understand the issue, and feel a lot of empathy for the guy, I do not excuse what he did at the same time I still feel that empathy. He dealt which loneliness and the fear of people leaving him. I had the same fear actually it’s probably bigger than my fear of bridges (which I got from the movie Shrek which is just???) unlike Dahmer I can cope with that fear better because I’m getting help. Dahmer probably had a ton of mental health issues that he was scared to get help with. This stigma around mental health is the reason attacks like Columbine and what Dahmer did happen. Now, we know that Eric was on meds for his anger and that means there was probably a mental health issue around that (“Columbine Shooter Was Prescribed Anti-Depressant”). Experts say Dylan had depression. The Wonder Years song “Local Man Ruins Everything” says it best “it’s not about forcing Happiness, it’s about not letting sadness win” or the line “I’m not a self help book, I’m just a f****d up kid” I feel no one really understand that about depression nor do they understand that it will end. In Another The Wonder Years song, You’re Not salinger, Get over it “Just ‘cause we’re down doesn’t mean we have to stay there”. I feel if we looked into the boys more we’d find other issues. Mental health is a reason no one can debunk.
Now how could it have been stopped? Well there is an endless number of things that could've been done to stop it like there is an endless number of reasons it could of happened. I don’t think any of these are debunkable. I’m only doing popular theories and the ones I think are most truthful.
The parents could of checked their rooms. In Columbine by Dave Cullen he states Eric’s parents looked through Eric’s room for alcohol after the conflict but Eric hid it so good that they couldn’t find it. Dylan was never searched, it wouldn’t of done any good to search his room because Eric had most of the weapons. If the parents checked their rooms they would found bombs and guns which would of gotten them arrested and saved so many lives and stopped many more school shootings from happening.
If people took a moment to make them feel human it might of given them a reason to not kill anyone. At Columbine it seemed that Eric and Dylan didn’t feel humanized. This in turn made them feel like the other kids aren’t human therefore they lost a lot of feeling for them. Taking a minute to make someone feel good could have affects you couldn’t even imagine because you have no clue what is going on in someone's life.
Finally the school could of done a lot more to make the school safer and a better environment. They school could of got a really good therapist and had Eric and Dylan see them. The school could of had more anti-bullying assemblies. The school could of had stricter punishments for bullying and more people looking out for it. The school could of done so much to stop this attack.
We have to use this knowledge to help stop future attacks, I feel we are looking for the wrong red flags and treating them in the wrong way. Hopefully, this informed people on the real issues and how harmful it is to place false stereotypes on people. Hopefully I changed your opinion and helped shed some light on the real issues.
work cited
"Columbine Shooter Was Prescribed Anti-depressant." CNN. Cable News Network, 29 Apr. 1999. Web. 04 May 2017.
Langman, Peter. "School Shooters Who Are Not White Males." Psychology Today. Sussex Publishers, 23 Dec. 2012. Web. 03 May 2017.
Shepard, C. "Columbine Music." Music for Columbine High School. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2017.
"Columbine Shooter Was Prescribed Anti-depressant." CNN. Cable News Network, 29 Apr. 1999. Web. 04 May 2017.
Langman, Peter. "School Shooters Who Are Not White Males." Psychology Today. Sussex Publishers, 23 Dec. 2012. Web. 03 May 2017.
Shepard, C. "Columbine Music." Music for Columbine High School. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2017.
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