posted on March 28, 2001 03:51:51 PM new
BANG BANG BANG
Gun shots fill the hallways. Kids scream. You see that guy from math class fall down in front of you grabbing his arm while blood oozes out. You turn and try to run. But there is no where to hide. More gun shots. The gun mans getting closer. He's right around the corner. And suddenly it hits you. You might die. The guy with the gun could be that one guy who you laughed at last week. It could be the "geek" who always sits by himself during lunch. Or what about the freshman who was beat up last month while you stood around and watched. If only you had said something. If only you had talked to him once. Smiled at him. Let him know that you knew he was alive. If only you had helped him instead of laughed... If only...
Sound like something from a horror film? On March fifth a lone gun man walked into his high school and shot and killed two people, wounding numerous others. The last count I believe was thirteen. Days before, this fifteen year old boy had joked about bringing a gun to school and shooting people with it. However, many of the students thought he was joking and choose to ignore him.
''(He) was joking on and off that he was going to come to school and shoot people,'' said Joshua Stevens, 15, a friend of the boy. ''He had it all planned out, but at the end of the weekend he said he was just joking and he wasn't really going to do it. I said, 'Like, you better be.' And he said, 'No, I'm serious.'''
''He was telling us how he was going to bring a gun to school ... but we thought he was joking,'' O'Grady said. ''We were like, 'Yeah, right.''' (Taken from AOL's report on March 5, 2001)
Even an adult had heard the boy talking about shooting people at school. All the warning signs were there. But no one did anything about it. They stood on the side and said, "It won't happen here, it won't happen to us." The time has come when we need to realize, it WILL happen to you! It will happen to me, if we don't do anything about it. The President was cited saying that it is up to the parents to teach their kids right from wrong. But I want to challenge each and every one of you who reads this to take I upon yourself to help stop school violence. Stop the shootings. Stop the killings. Stop it all!
''He was picked on all the time,'' student Jessica Moore said. ''He was picked on because he was one of the scrawniest guys. People called him freak, dork, nerd, stuff like that.'' (Taken from AOL's report on March 5, 2001)
Once again we have another "outcast" for lack of a better word. A boy picked on by his peers. Here's where we start the challenge. Look at yourself tonight, really look at yourself. Have you ever picked on someone? Have you ever hurt someone's feelings because they were different? Have you? Did you ever stop to think what that might mean. To two of the students at Santana High School it meant death. As terrible as it sounds its the harsh reality of the world in which we live in today. Our every action counts. Its up to you to decide how it will count. Will it be one for the good guys? Or one for the bad guys? Its your call...
Looking back on the many school shootings in the past few years I begin to worry. Worry about my safety in my school. For the safety of my friends, of the friends I have made on KiwiBox, worried for everyone. My Aunt and Uncle were teachers at a middle school near Columbine and when word of that shooting reached my ears I was worried for their safety but not alarmed for my own. But there is something about the fact that this boy could smile while he shot at his fellow students that disturbs me. Its almost as if he had fun while he shot the kids. How could anyone even remotely human find pleasure in shooting at people? Just thinking about it upsets me. To think that he smiled while shooting them. Excuse my French, but that is fucked up. How dare he, or anyone, cause me to become concerned for my safety at school. And quite frankly, I'm tired of sitting back and biting my nails, worried about which school will be next. When someone puts me in a position to be worried about my safety there is something seriously wrong.
I refuse to be afraid. Concerned, yes, afraid, no. I am going to fight this until I die if its the last thing I do. And I am asking all of you to help me out! If you EVER hear someone talking about this report them! I don't care who they are or even if they were joking. Killing someone is NEVER something to joke about. Second, tomorrow I plan to talk to my principal about the possibility of setting up a toll free number where kids can call and anonymously report their friends or anyone who talks about brining a gun to school. I beg you to do the same! Please, for your own safety!
So far people have been pushing the blame of the school shootings around. Some blame the parents, others the students who picked on the kids, and still others say that violence in the media. I say, who cares! We have a serious problem here. And its about time we did something about it. I'm tired of waiting for the President, or the school board to do something. Its my safety I'm worried about, so I better do something to make sure I will be safe.
