Introduction
The Columbine Massacre: in the Killer’s Mind is a film documenting the massacre that occurred on 20th April 1999, in Columbine High School, Columbia, Colorado. Dylan Klebold, aged 17, and Eric Harris, aged 18, students at the school, shot and killed 12 students and a teacher, leaving 24 other people wounded before committing suicide. It was considered the worst school shooting in the United States. Colorado State was shocked as people wondered about the motivation behind these acts of violence.
The Robb Elementary School shooting happened on 24th May 2022 when Salvador Ramos, aged 18, shot and murdered nineteen students and two teaching staff members and wounded seventeen other people. Robb Elementary School is located in Texas in the Uvalde County region. Uvalde is a city in South Texas occupied majorly by Hispanic people, with most of the students from this group being from a population of economically disadvantaged backgrounds (Kellner, 2022). The shooting happened on the day when the school had an awards ceremony. On the day of the shooting, Salvador argued with his grandmother over a phone bill. He shot her in the face and left with her rifle. Salvador had used his Facebook account to send three messages to an online female friend in Germany. The first message said he was going to shoot his grandmother. The second said he had shot his grandmother, and the third later said he would shoot at an elementary school. These messages were ignored by the said friend and were discovered later after the shooting.
Juvenile Issues Addressed in Both Shootings
Shooters in the Columbine film and those in the Robb School shooting are people below 21 years of age. Salvador bought rifles right after turning 18 years and posted images on social media. Harris and Klebold bought their guns from a private dealer. The age of the perpetrators is critical in understanding how these youngsters are pushed to acquire deadly firearms and how this leads to mass shootings. Young men in the age bracket of 15-24 are at the height of developmental changes coupled with societal pressures, which can turn them towards violence, rarely, mass shootings.
These people exemplify a broader trend of loneliness, hopelessness, and the darker side of a culture filled with social media and violent content. These shooters often feel like losers, driven by the urge to prove to everyone that they have power, which can signify immaturity. Klebold made videos of himself where he outlined the things he hates (Kaim, 2016). He is disgusted by many things and seems he wants to punish humankind for being inferior.
Bullying has been addressed as a contributing factor to teenagers opting to kill. In both incidents, the aggressors had a history of bullying. According to fellow students, Salvador was bullied because of his speech. He had a stutter and a heavy lisp and occasionally had fistfights with his classmates who bullied him. The pair of Harris and Klebold who murdered their classmates is believed to have been a show of revenge against bullies who caused their miserable lives in school.
Comparison of Events in the Film and those in Real-Life
Similarities
In the film documentary, the shootings were perpetrated by Klebold and Harris, who entered the school armed with rifles, pistols, and explosives. Their violent activity stopped when they shot and killed themselves. In the event, police were blamed for taking too long to respond. Despite the shooting ending at noon, the police did not go into the shooting area until many hours later, a period in which some victims bled to death. In Uvalde, Salvador entered the school fully armed to attack and kill as many people as he could. The Uvalde school police chief is blamed for failing to take charge at the right time. Poor decision-making and failures in the police system contributed to the loss of more lives that could have been prevented had action has been taken earlier.
In both cases, the perpetrators used to wear all black, played violent video games, and posted on social media before the shootings. The film shows Dylan and Klebold adopting killer looks and then becoming antisocial. They hated people and felt that they were not good enough. Ramos is reported to have become depressed and lonely and started wearing all-black outfits and combat boots. The perpetrators legally bought the firearms before the shooting.
It can be concluded that the shooters, among many reasons, wanted fame. The film documents that Ramos was reportedly fascinated with school shootings and increasingly sought to be notorious and famous on social media. One year before the shooting, he got the nickname ‘school shooter’ across social media platforms due to the violent threats against users. The boy had dropped out of high school and was a social outcast who felt unusual violence could bring him fame.
In the film, Klebold videotapes himself bragging about imposing the most deaths in the history of the U. S. Harris created a private website where he posted mischief and vandalism videos and later about making explosives (Kaim, 2016). Harris wrote in his journals about the desire to rape and torture women and his interest in cannibalism. They planted bombs in the school, hoping they would detonate and kill many people. In their plans, they were to remain outside when the bombs exploded and shoot those who tried to escape the bombed rooms.
Bullying in school could have contributed to the shootings at Columbine and Rodd Elementary School. Investigations in the film reveal Klebold and Harris were bullied and abused by most school people, and a few athletes hit them. They lived with this rage, and it grew deeper and deeper. Their diaries, where they fantasize about their killings, are revealed. Salvador is bullied in fourth grade because of his stutter, short haircut, and clothing. Ramos’s friend says he was bullied hard by many people over social media, gaming, and everything.
Differences
Ramos had issues with his mother, who was a drug user. He may have been raped by one of his mother’s boyfriends, but his mother did not believe him. They frequently argued, and he once posted a video arguing with his mother on Instagram. This made him hate women; he was enraged and threatened other people, especially female players when playing video games. Police killed Ramos inside the school, while in the film, Klebold and Harris committed suicide after the shooting. Klebold and Harris shot their classmates and teacher, while Ramos shot students at his former school.
Peer pressure could have played a role in Harris and Klebold’s reasons for killing. They were influenced by an exclusive group of individuals in the school known as the Trench Coat Mafia because of the type of attire they used to wear. They were not members of this group but are reported to have been allied with some associates. Furthermore, they had black trench outfit at the time when the murders took place. Harris and Klebold made a film titled “Hitmen for Hire.” The video seemed to be a rehearsal of the shooting as in the video; they are walking in the school hallways and shooting at bullies with fake guns.
The shootings happen inside schools where the perpetrators enter the school and start shooting. In the Columbine massacre movie, most victims are shot in the library. Ramos’ victims were random, and the incident occurred inside a classroom (Kaim, 2016). On the other hand, Klebold and Harris are believed to have targeted athletes. When they entered the room, they began firing with the words, “All the jocks stand up.” Columbine School glorified athletes, and these athletes engaged in mischief, physical abuse, and sexual and racial bullying without reprimand (Nikishin, 2021). It is almost as if no one took the problem seriously. This may have contributed to the killers feeling powerless before the jocks and thus fantasizing about revenge.
Conclusion
Easy access to guns and ammunition has contributed majorly to mass shootings in the United States. Some practical ways can be used to reduce gun ownership, among them limiting firearm access to young people and individuals at risk of self-harm. Doctors can assist in achieving this by educating people and families about keeping guns away from children. Some states have laws restricting doctors from discussing guns with patients. Lifting these laws will enable them to talk to patients about safety, including gun safety. Another way is to make the gun industry responsible and accountable for gun sales and guarantee adequate supervision over the marketing and selling of firearms. Gun manufacturers should be held liable if their products are misused, compelling them to make them safer. The Federal laws should abolish legal immunity given to firearm manufacturers. Guns should be securely stored to limit easy access to them. The government should insist on mandatory training and licensing for gun owners and engage gun owners and dealers in finding solutions.
References
Kaim, S. (2016). The Columbine Massacre: In the Killers Mind [DVD].
Kellner, D. (2022). The Uvalde, Texas school shooting massacre. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 1-5.
Nikishin, V. (2021). The Columbine (School Shooting): Essence, legal qualifications, forensic diagnostics2. Lex Russica, (11), 62-76. Web.