School shooting: Difference between revisions
imported>Madame Psychosis Added a section pertaining to the history of school shootings |
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Though there were several school shootings in the 70's and 80's, few of these resulted in multiple deaths. Some that did, including the CSU, Fullerton massacre and the Stockton schoolyard massacre were perpetrated by adults who either had never attended the institutions they attacked, or had passed out/dropped out long ago. | Though there were several school shootings in the 70's and 80's, few of these resulted in multiple deaths. Some that did, including the CSU, Fullerton massacre and the Stockton schoolyard massacre were perpetrated by adults who either had never attended the institutions they attacked, or had passed out/dropped out long ago. | ||
The 90's saw a surge in school shootings. The archetype of the school shooter as an angry, alienated young person (young man, mostly) was established in this | The 90's saw a surge in school shootings. The archetype of the school shooter as an angry, alienated young person (young man, mostly) was established in this decade. School shooters sought to emulate former shooters by wearing the same clothes as them, and, in some cases (mainly black trench coats) , using the same weapons (pipe bombs/ specific guns). The most tragic school shooting of this decade, as well as the deadliest High School shooting at the time, was the [[Columbine High School shooting]], in which perpetrators [[Eric Harris]] and [[Dylan Klebold]] killed 13 people and injured many more, before taking their own lives. | ||
Several school shooters were inspired by Columbine, with copycats appearing as soon as a month after it. Copycat shooters donned black trench coats and even imitated the dialogue of the Columbine shooters during their sprees (for example, some shooters asked their victims whether they believed in God before shooting them). The copycat effect is in part due to the excessive focus of the media on the background of the shooters, and the easy availability of journals/manifestos written by previous shooters online. | |||
Among the deadliest of school shootings of the 21st century are the [[Virginia Tech Shooting]], the [[Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting]], and the [[Stoneman Douglas High School Shooting]], all of which surpassed Columbine in the terms of numbers of deaths. Each of these shootings resulted in debates about firearm possession and increased background checks during gun purchases in the United States of America. | |||
From the mid-2000s onward, copycat attacks have been perpetrated in other countries as well. Incidents of shooting and stabbing sprees in countries like Finland and Russia have been perpetrated by people inspired by Columbine. | |||
==Causes== | ==Causes== | ||
*[[Bullying]] (peer victimization, peer pressure, [[cyberbullying]], etc.) which can cause depression and/or personality disorders. For that matter, the shooter may (sometimes also) be a bully themselves. Evidence of the shooter being a bully and/or bullied can often be seen by them taunting their shooting victims. | *[[Bullying]] (peer victimization, peer pressure, [[cyberbullying]], etc.) which can cause depression and/or personality disorders. For that matter, the shooter may (sometimes also) be a bully themselves. Evidence of the shooter being a bully and/or bullied can often be seen by them taunting their shooting victims. | ||
*Revenge against teachers for punishing the shooter unfairly. For that matter, there are cases of adults shooting staff members and/or students for wrongs/ | *Revenge against teachers for punishing the shooter unfairly. For that matter, there are cases of adults shooting staff members and/or students for wrongs/perceived wrongs the victim(s) committed against the perpetrator or their friends and/or family. | ||
*Mental illness (sometimes without cause) | *Mental illness (sometimes without cause) | ||
*[[Misanthropy]] | *[[Misanthropy]] | ||
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*Xenophobia (targeting specific racial groups out of hatred, usually the belief that Caucasians are superior to all other races) | *Xenophobia (targeting specific racial groups out of hatred, usually the belief that Caucasians are superior to all other races) | ||
*They have been physically abused at home. | *They have been physically abused at home. | ||
*The Copycat Effect (the shooter might have been inspired by previous school shootings and | *The Copycat Effect (the shooter might have been inspired by previous school shootings and wish to emulate them) | ||
==Examples== | ==Examples== | ||