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The Columbine High School Massacre

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Columbine High School Massacre and How it Impacted Public Security

“Do you believe in God?” This was the last thing Rachel Scott, a recently born-again Christian, had heard before telling Eric Harris yes and then being shot to death at point blank range. This quote is from the infamous Columbine High School mass shooting in Littleton, Colorado. This incident caused much outrage and questioning from many parents and students about the safety of their well-being while in school. The concerns quickly leaked into the minds of US citizens, as nobody felt safe anywhere in public after the tragedy. The shootings caused mass hysteria and caused the nation to become more concerned about security. Even though it was a terrible tragedy and there is …show more content…

Before Columbine there was never much want or need for major school security. Students could often come and go as they pleased without having to answer to an officer or teacher, and threats by students weren’t taken seriously. Most schools had no officers on duty and only a handful of security cameras around the school. They didn’t have regular lockdown drills for emergencies, and they were not prepared for such a tragedy. Before Columbine nobody would have though two upper-middle class children could actually commit such a heinous and random act such as slaughtering their classmates without remorse. Immediately after the incident almost every school in the nation had several officers on patrol in their halls. They changed the security cameras to where they could see every crevice of the school, including the parking lots. As technology continues to advance the nation utilizes the new gadgets and and electronics to have one of the best security systems in the world. Unfortunately no matter how advanced the nation’s security is there is always someone somewhere that is two steps ahead of everybody …show more content…

The national news broadcasters interrupted all television programming in order to inform the nation of the tragic events that took place at approximately 11:19 that morning. On the news they displayed images of everything from blood splattered sidewalks in front of the school to grieving families and friends mourning the loss of their loved ones. The media was unknowingly desensitizing their viewers to tragedy, due to the fact that they would not be forced to witness so many traumatized and pained faces at one time again until some years

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Columbine, by Dave Cullen is a non-fiction book documenting the horrific massacre which took place in Littleton, Colorado on April 20, 1999. Not only does the writer give great detail about the shooting itself, he also gives and in depth look into the lives of the killers, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, and their victims. The focus of this book is for the author to attempt to bring to light what really happened and hopefully gain better understanding as to why it all took place. Cullen, a journalist, begins an extensive nine year research in order to achieve awareness of the happenings before, during and after this tragic event. Entries from the perpetrators personal journals, stories from the ones who witnessed the shootings first hand, countless interviews from the victim’s families, as well as multiple other pieces of information give the reader an extremely up close and personal surrounding Columbine.

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218 Words | 1 Pages

On April 20, 1999, a school shooting occurred in Colorado, Columbine High School. Cassie Bernall was shot fatally, leading to death. Other survivors in the library never heard Eric Harris ask her if she believed in God. Beside him kneeling down in her face hearing her pray. All he said was “Peek-a-boo” Before shooting Cassie.

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1558 Words | 7 Pages

They'd also thought police would kill them but they were faced with a decision - how to kill themselves. They went into the library and shot themselves, Eric by firing into his mouth and Dylan by firing into his temple. Four months after the shootings, the school was scheduled to reopen. Students and the community expected a huge contingency of journalists but by then, they'd become angry at the constant coverage. Many of the newspapers had begun referring to the shootings as "Columbine" which angered the students - Columbine was the name of their school, not this horrible event.

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There are different steps for school safety now because Columbine High School and the police were a big factor in “dropping the ball” when it came to the Columbine shooting. So many people missed a lot of signs, especially the police station. Brookes Brown and his family warned the police about Eric Harris for more than a year before Columbine, when the Brown family was threatened by Eric multiple times. It is revealed that the Browns family “had contacted the sheriff’s department about Eric fifteen times”(165). Although they contacted them fifteen times the police station never took their concerns seriously, yet if they had taken their concerns seriously there is a possibility that Columbine would have never happened.

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890 Words | 4 Pages

When Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold terrorized Columbine High School nearly twenty years ago, the shooting shocked the nation. However, as the media incorrectly reported- the attack on Columbine High School was not an intended school shooting, but rather an elaborate terror plot with the hopes of killing hundreds of people. It had been decades since terror of this magnitude had occurred on school grounds, and the first one that had occurred in the dawn of mass media. Never before had the media become so up close and personal with the victims, to the point where they were able to talk to the students while the shooting was happening. But with this new sense of power and responsibility to quickly inform the public and develop conclusions, danger

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1094 Words | 5 Pages

(b) pp. 28-29). In the article by Hodgins and Saliba (2015, pp.10-13), discuss the Columbine shootings and the reliance of first responders isolating and containing the scene, then waiting for Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams to arrive. They highlight that with this methodology, by the time SWAT arrived and entered the school, the two shooters had already killed three people and continued their indiscriminate shooting and killing an additional ten more people when police were already in attendance.

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889 Words | 4 Pages

School Shootings: How We All Miss the Point... The aftermath of a school shooting is tragic, depressing, and causes hatred for the lives lost and the person who took them. Everyone, especially the media, tries to interpret why the shooter killed their victims, or why they felt the need to end others’ lives and their own. How We All Miss the Point on School Shootings, by Mark Manson, explains what and why these mass shootings happen. He starts by using examples of shootings and the murderer’s past.

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Jordan Grant McCrady, 1 English 102 16 January, 2023 A Columbine Martyr April 20, 1999, was a day of absolute terror and devastation, as two troubled teenagers set out, after months of planning and preparation, to terrorize their high school just weeks before graduation. The Columbine shooting has gone down in history as the most deadly school shooting in American history with a total of fifteen killed (including twelve students, a beloved teacher, and the two perpetrators), twenty-four injured, and hundreds traumatized beyond repair. Years of investigating and speculating have caused mass confusion and hysteria regarding the incident. Countless conspiracy theories have been adopted, media outlets worldwide have picked up the story, and

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1532 Words | 7 Pages

A teacher’s son, clad in black and carrying two 9mm pistols rampaged through a Connecticut elementary school, killing 20 small children and six adults, a tragedy President Obama said had “broken the hearts of America” (Williams).” Many people believe that the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre was planned because of the odd demeanor of the parents or victim, Emilie Parker, the medical personnel who were turned away from the scene, why care flight helicopters were never requested, and questions concerning the validity of the medical examiner. This tragic event was not at all planned because all of these questions can be reasonably answered. One of the reasons people question the tragedy of the Sandy Hook massacre is because of the strange

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355 Words | 2 Pages

Whenever a mass shooting occurs, we are left wondering about a number of things. We are informed of the when, where, body count, and identities of the shooters, but the answer we wait the most for is the “why” behind the crime. The number of mass shootings that have occurred this year allows us to see that each time, Americans try to put these shootings into context. It’s wondered whether the shooter was motivated by race, religion, sex, or mental illness, and so on. There is no point in wondering about the motives behind a mass shooting when nothing is being done to prevent them.

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676 Words | 3 Pages

The Speaker Series events, “The Charleston Massacre and the History of Racial Violence in America: A Panel Discussion,” “Capitalism vs. Reality,” “The Importance of Non-Violent Protests to Oppose Racial Injustice in Ferguson,” and “MARCH: The Struggle for Racial Equality and Social Justice 1965/2015” detailed the history of racial and economic discrimination against minorities, while also, noting the need and importance of citizens supporting social movements that aim to establish social equality. The Speaker Series events stressed the importance of minorities overcoming adversity and establishing safe spaces within their communities and societies, as a whole, where they can not only prosper, but also contribute to and better society. Each lecture stressed the need for engaged citizenship in order to promote social awareness and change. Furthermore, the lectures ensured that those attending

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624 Words | 3 Pages

“There were 372 mass shootings in the U.S. in 2015, killing 475 and wounding 1870” BBC News reports. According to the statistic, mass shootings are happening everyday and even every minute an hour. Mass shooting is a huge public concern. Therefore, when a shooting occurs, media would often report the shooting with bloody detail, surprised statistics, and influential old shooting. Moreover, the media are the biggest fear mongers which create public panic to the society by using various methods.

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1113 Words | 5 Pages

My book report was about a horrible tragedy that happened on April 20 1999 it was called the columbian high school shooting it was absolutely horrendous and terrible no parent or family should have to go through what these families did 13 were killed and 24 wounded it went on for 2 days i couldn't imagine the pain and suffering those families went through not knowing if there loved ones were dead, wounded, or just hiding i couldn’t deal with that i wouldn’t be able to handle all the thoughts racing through my head or even trying to wrap my head around how two high school boys (Dylan Klebold 17 killed 5 and Eric Harris 18 he killed 8) could do such a thing to people they see everyday like it was a walk in the park they planned it all out for

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464 Words | 2 Pages

Through reading “Columbine: Whose Fault is It?” by Marilyn Manson we can identify that the media had a great influence in the aftermath of the shooting, and who was the scapegoat for it, in other words who is to blame for what happened to those poor 13 innocent teenage kids. The Columbine High School massacre was an infamous event that went down as one of the worst shootings to happen to a high school in America. In 1999, a pair of two students named Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold decided to assault a school in Colorado named Columbine High School. Their intent was unknown, and because of that, many people started speculating as to why the duo decided to shoot up the school.

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231 Words | 1 Pages

I was raised in the Columbine High School community of Littleton, Colorado, a community that had already suffered a major school shooting tragedy. “Columbine” was something my older siblings talked about, something people were still healing from but something I was too young to understand. That is until February 23, 2010 when my innocence escaped me. It had been the end of a typical middle school day when I gathered my things and headed for the door. I remember being startled when my heart started to pound and the Holy Ghost urged me to move quickly into the bus.

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