Columbine High School massacre
The Columbine High School massacre occurred on April 20, 1999 at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, United States, when two teenage students, Eric Harris (born April 9, 1981) and Dylan Klebold (born September 9, 1981), executed a planned shooting rampage, killing 12 other students and a teacher before committing suicide. Some argue that one of the shooters killed the other and then himself.The firearms used, one handgun, one rifle and two sawed-off shotguns were illegally obtained from adults during the year-long planning period for the killings. In addition to the firearms, the killers had constructed as many as 97 bombs of various designs and sizes and exploded many of them during the attack. Fifty-five shots were fired from the semi-automatic handgun, which was used to kill 4 students and wound 2 others. At least two of the adults who knowingly violated the laws to provide these firearms have been sentenced to prison.
Much of the massacre was captured on the highschool's security cameras.
In the following weeks, media reports about the two killers portrayed them as outcast "nerds" who were unpopular and ostracized by much of the school's population. Harris and Klebold, as well as a few other friends, had formed a small club known as the "Trenchcoat Mafia" in which they wore heavy black trenchcoats (possibly inspired by the films The Matrix or the Basketball Diaries) and generally embraced a goth culture, obsessed with death and violence. They were said to be fans of Marilyn Manson and violent video games such as Doom.
The boys had written diaries detailing their elaborate plots for the massacre. They apparently intended to cause a great deal more carnage than they achieved, and even made plans to hijack an airplane and crash it into a city as the grim finale of their rampage.
In the aftermath of the shootings, there was a great deal of debate about what "provoked" the killers and whether anything could have been done to prevent the crime. The reality of social cliques in high schools was a frequent topic of discussion. Many argued that the boys' isolation from the rest of their classmates prompted a feelings of helplessness, insecurity and depression, as well as a strong desire for attention.
It's been publicly revealed that Harris had been prescribed and was taking Luvox® (Fluvoxamine maleate), a powerful antidepressant, at the time of the shooting spree. Although Klebold's medical records have been sealed, there is strong reason to believe that he too had been prescribed one of several popular drugs for depression. Throughout the 1990s these drugs arguably became the standard response to a wide variety of behavioral problems in schools, especially for boys. An alleged side-effect of these drugs is a loss of empathy for other human beings. Of the various USA "school shooters" whose medical history has been made public, all were either currently taking or had recently gone off one of these powerful mind-altering prescription drugs given to them to treat various serious behavioral problems.
Other analysts argued that part of the killers' problem may have been a result of their constant exposure to violent imagery in video games, music, and movies, theorizing that their obsession with these forms of media may have led them to have trouble telling the difference between reality and fantasy.
In response to concerns over the causes of Columbine and other school massacres, many schools later instituted new anti-bully policies as well as so-called "zero tolerance" approaches to weapons and threatening behavior.
One of the victims of the massacre was Cassie Bernall, a junior at Columbine. She was murdered by the gunmen in the school's library. Reportedly, she was asked by one of the assailants if she believed in God, and her simple response was "yes." She has since been exalted as a martyr by many. Her tale is retold by her mother, Misty Bernall, in the book She Said Yes: The Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall. According to Mrs. Bernall, her hope for the book is "that [Cassie's] 'yes' inspires others to take their faith more seriously."
There are differing reports of the incident involving Cassie Bernall. The person who originally recounted hearing the exchange, Craig Scott, identified the voice as that of Cassie Bernall but had not seen the speaker. He later indicated that the gunman was at the location where, unknown to Scott, Valeen Schnurr was hiding. She was wounded and praying when asked by the gunman if she believed in God, to which she responded "Yes." The gunman did nothing to her and she survived. Schnurr has since confirmed this story.
The massacre was one of the subjects of the 2001 Michael Moore documentary film Bowling for Columbine, about the culture of violence in the US.
See also: school massacresCassie Bernall
Documentary
