Between 2013-15 there were about 2 school shootings a month. According to ABC News, “141-The number of people killed in a mass murder or attempted mass murder at a school since Columbine” (Pearle 1). School shootings terrify americans, yet we have the most school shootings in the world. An investigation of school shootings in America will enable the reader to understand the impact the Columbine shooting, the Sandy Hook shooting, and the Santana shooting had on modern school security.
The Columbine shooting is what many people believe to be the start of the school shooting movement. On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed thirteen and wounded twenty when they shot up Columbine High School in Colorado. They also killed themselves. This was one of the worst school shootings in U.S. history. One may believe it to be what started the increase in school shootings. Harris and Klebold had planted two propane bombs in the cafeteria, but both failed to detonate. In their journals they said that their attack would be worse than the Oklahoma City bombing of 1995. They had no specific victims selected. Harris and Klebold wanted to cause as much damage as possible. As a result, there has been an increase in school violence as a whole.
Another infamous school shooting occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Twenty children and six adults were murdered by Adam Lanza on December 14, 2012. Earlier that day, he shot his mother, Nancy Lanza, four times. Peter Lanza, Adam Lanza’s father, explains why she was shot four times, “One for each of us: one for Nancy; one for him; one for Ryan; one for me” (Stoller 1). Just like the Columbine shooters, Lanza wanted to cause damage. No one knows what Adam Lanza’s real motive was since he took his life after the shooting. Some believe it was violent video games, some mental health issues. There are even some people who believe it never happened. While most school shootings are talked about often, there are a few that have faded into the background.
When it occurred in 2001, the Santana High School shooting was the worst since Columbine. Charles Andrew Williams was fifteen and a freshman at Santana High School in California when he killed two and injured thirteen on March 5, 2001. Even though not as many people died compared to Columbine or Virginia Tech, this event is just as important. On Saturday, March 3, 2001, two days before his rampage, Williams told a few friends what he wanted to do, but his friends thought he was joking and did not report him. A great deal of people think that his friends are as guilty as Williams, while others believe they can not be blamed for the shooting. This terrible event has helped students speak up and stop more school shootings.
The victims and family and friends of children and adults killed during an act of school violence are not the only ones that suffer. Witnesses and even students that were not at school at the time of the event are affected. PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is common for those who witnessed or were injured. A great deal of students and staff are diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. The school is also affected. Enrollment drops significantly, as well as students test scores. As a result, the school’s overall test averages also drop.
School shootings do not just affect the people involved but also society. More people want gun control now than ever before. Everyone wants to know if these restrictions will help. There are some countries that have gun restrictions, and sometimes they help while other times they do not do anything. People are asking for the faculty of schools to be permitted to carry firearms. Others want more security such as police and armed guards. Schools throughout the nation have installed metal detectors. Primarily middle and elementary schools have banned book bags. The security in schools have been updated, such as security cameras and security guards. The reality is we will not know if any of these work without trying them.
School shootings will have a lasting impression on school security and America as a whole. Even though every shooters motive is different, hopefully these events can teach us to pay closer attention and to speak up.