|
|
 |
 |
"Why?" is a special CTA web version of articles
published by Scholastic.Inc in their classroom magazines - April, 2000.
For a related article posted on School
Violence see "Columbine,
Killing and You" |
|
"The nation is still struggling to come to terms with the horrifying
school shootings at Columbine High School last April 20. To mark the anniversary,
Scholastic turns for answers to one of the country's leading experts in children and
violence."
Scholastic |
|
There are two versions of "Why?" posted below. The
first version is intended for older adolescents. The second is a simplified version
of the first for younger children. The final section of this special ChildTrauma Web
version of "Why?" is a guide for teachers to use when discussing these articles
with their students.
|
"Why?"
for older adolescents |
|
Why? Why did two teens plan and methodically
carry out a murderous attack at Columbine High School, killing 12 students and a teacher? |
When studying violence, two sobering observations emerge: Human beings are more violent
and murderous to each other than any other species. It is impossible to know the complete
explanation for any act of violence.
Yet there is hope. Not all humans kill. While we will never really know the full answer
to "why" for the murders at Columbine, we do know how to decrease violence. We
do know how to create safe homes, schools, and communities. At the heart of all violence
prevention is respect. These three forms of respect can help you be part of the solution.
Respect others
"They were just camel jockeys. They don't belong in this country anyway.
I don't see what the big deal is." — a 15-year-old boy who participated in
the armed robbery of a convenience store run by a family from Lebanon.
Hate kills. And hate comes from dehumanizing others. If someone views another
person as less than human, harming or killing that person will be just like killing any
other animal.
Hateful beliefs such as racism, anti-Semitism, and misogyny dehumanize entire groups.
In schools, this can happen when cliques form — jocks, preps, geeks. When people
respect and work to understand each other, violence decreases.
Hate can also come from being disconnected from others, marginalized, misunderstood,
and ignored. Disconnected people are more likely to dehumanize others and behave
violently.
What you can do:
 Be
intolerant of intolerance. Don't laugh at jokes that use hateful ideas — and
certainly don't repeat them. Don't be afraid to call someone on a hateful or degrading
comment about another group. Hateful beliefs are like a cancer. They can spread, invade,
and destroy. Stop them before they spread.
Reach out to
isolated kids. You know who they are. Include them. Look them in the eyes; talk to them
between class; sit with them at lunch. You will be surprised at how much you both can
grow.
Respect yourself
"I don't remember why it even started. We had a lot of beers and smoked some
reefer. I didn't think he would die." — a 17 year-old boy who was one of three
who beat a classmate to death at a party after a fight, apparently over a parking place.
People with little regard for themselves will act in ways that are impulsive,
dangerous, and violent. Alcohol makes all people stupid and makes some people violent. A
huge percentage of impulsive violence takes place under the influence of alcohol or other
drugs.
What you can do:
Stay away from
alcohol and drugs. If you won't, don't be an idiot about drinking. Be with people you know
and trust in places that are safe. Stay off the roads. Don't ever pressure others to drink
or use.
Respect the fragility of life and the destructive power
of weapons
"That's so cool. Look at his head explode." — a 9-year-old boy watching
TV. His behavior in school was so disruptive he had to be placed in a special classroom.
People tend to be less horrified by violence when they are surrounded by death and
violence. Today, violence permeates our society.
In the United States, the average person sees 200,000 graphic violent acts on TV by the
age of 18. And much of this violence involves guns. After viewing thousands of
"fake" killings, we do not understand the lethal power of guns. Guns have made
us more efficient at killing. Five thousand years ago a drunken, isolated, hateful person
could try to kill, but would have had no firearms to make it easy. Today, in a single fit
of rage, one person can kill much more easily.
What you can do:
Don't watch so
much violence. It is everywhere, but try to watch less and try to play violent videogames
less. If you are watching and someone younger is in the room, change the channel.
Learn about the
real impact of violence. Try to learn what a bullet really does. Your community may have a
Survivor of Violence group; see what its members can tell you. A little research can teach
you more about violence than a lifetime of TV.
Don't play with
guns. Use guns with supervision. Never mix drinking and shooting. Don't carry a weapon. If
your family has a gun, help your parents come up with a safe place to keep it.
About the Author
Dr. Perry is the chief of psychiatry at Texas Children's Hospital and the Trammell
Research Professor of Child Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine. He and his team at
the ChildTrauma Programs work each day with children and teens touched by violence. For
more on their award-winning work, visit the web site, www.ChildTrauma.org |
|
|
Simplified
version of "Why?" |
|
Why? Why
did two teens plan and methodically carry out a murderous attack at Columbine High School,
killing 12 students and a teacher?
When experts try to answer these questions, two sobering
observations emerge. Human beings are more violent and murderous to each other
than any other species. The major predators of humankind are other humans. Second, it is
impossible to know the exact explanation for any act of violence.
Yet there is hope. Not all humans kill. While we will never really
know the full answer to "why" for the murders at Columbine, we do know how to
decrease violence. We do know how to create safe homes, schools, and communities. At the
heart of violence prevention is respect. There are three ways to create respect.
1. Respect Others
Hate kills. And hate comes from misunderstanding and dehumanizing
others. If someone views another person as less than human, harming or killing that person
will be just like killing any other animal.
"They were just camel
jockeys. They don't belong in this country anyway. I don't see what the big deal is."
Comments of a 15-year-old boy who participated in the armed robbery of a convenience store
run by a family from Lebanon.
Hateful beliefs such as racism, anti-Semitism, and misogyny
dehumanize entire groups. In schools, this can happen when cliques form — jocks,
preps, geeks. When people respect each other and work to understand each other, violence
decreases.
Hate can also come from being disconnected from others,
marginalized, misunderstood, and ignored. Disconnected people are more likely to
dehumanize others and behave violently or aggressively.
After seeing the crying parents
of the girl he had beaten, strangled, and stabbed to death, an 18-year-old murderer
muttered, "I don't know why they're crying, I'm the one going to jail."
What you can do:
Do not
tolerate intolerance.
Don't laugh at jokes that use hateful ideas — and
certainly don't repeat them. Don't be afraid to call someone on a hateful or degrading comment about another group. Hateful
beliefs are like a cancer. They can spread, invade, and destroy. Stop them before they
spread.
Reach
out to isolated kids.
You know who they are. Include them. Look them in the eyes;
talk to them between class; sit with them at lunch. You will be surprised at how much you
both can grow.
2. Respect Yourself
"I don't remember why
it even started. We had a lot of beers and smoked some reefer. I didn't think he would
die." A comment from a 17 year-old boy who was one of three who beat a classmate to
death at a party after a fight broke out — apparently over a parking place.
People with little regard for themselves will act in ways that
are impulsive, dangerous, and violent. Alcohol makes all people stupid and some people
violent. A huge percentage of impulsive violence takes place under the influence of
alcohol or other drugs.
What you can do:
Stay
away from alcohol and drugs. If you won't, don't be an idiot about drinking. Be
with people you know and trust in places that are safe. Stay off the roads. Don't ever
pressure someone else to drink or use.
3. Respect how fragile life really is and how destructive
weapons are.
"That's so cool. Look at his
head explode." Spoken by a 9-year-old boy watching TV. His aggressive behavior in
school was so disruptive that he had to be placed in a special classroom.
People tend to be less horrified by violence when they are
surrounded by death and violence. Today, violence permeates our society.
In the United States, the average person sees 200,000 graphic
violent acts on TV by the age of 18. And much of this violence involves guns. After
viewing thousands of "fake" killings, we do not understand the lethal power of
guns. Guns have made us more efficient at killing. Five thousand years ago a drunk,
isolated, hateful person could try to kill, but would have no firearms to make it so easy.
Today, in a single fit of rage, one person can much more easily kill.
What you can do:
Don't watch so
much violence. It is everywhere, but try to watch less and try to play violent
videogames less. If you are watching and someone younger is in the room, change the
channel.
Learn about the real
impact of violence. Try to learn what a bullet really does. A little research can teach
you more about violence than a lifetime of TV.
Don't play with
guns. Use guns with supervision. Never mix drinking and shooting. Don't carry a
weapon. If your family has a gun, help your parents come up with a safe place to keep it.
About the Author
As Chief of psychiatry at Texas Children's Hospital and director of
the Child Trauma Academy there, Dr. Perry works every day with children and teens who have
committed acts of violence — and those who have been victims of violence. For more on
his award-winning work, visit the web site, www.childtrauma.org
|
Teacher's guide
to "Why?" |
|
Respect and Violence Prevention
Dear Teacher:
The problem of youth violence has been increasing over the last ten years. From 1986 to
1999, there has been a 60% increase in youth violence, now accounting for 18% of all
violent crime. There are an estimated 250,000 assaults in schools each month! Several
high-profile shootings have taken place in schools in the last seven years.
In this issue, I focus on respect as the root of violence prevention. Teachers are
respected and influential adults in a child's life. Here are a few things you can do to
help foster these forms of respect for the children in your classroom.
Respect of self: Children derive their sense of self from those around
them – family, friends, classmates and teachers. If the reflections are good, the
child can build a sense of self-respect. If they are negative, the child can actually come
to disrespect or even hate some aspect of themselves. "I hate my big lips, my fat
hips, my curly hair – I want to be thin and blond." Children can even begin to
disrespect being smart and stop trying in school because their peers do not respect
academic achievement. Help a child feel solid and respected for their strengths.
Respect of others: Misunderstanding, fear and violence are all
inter-related. When children learn about other cultures and other times, it can be very
useful to stress the common features across cultures as well as those that distinguish
each. When a child can identify with a child from another culture or era, their capacity
to empathize increases. Intolerance of teasing, bullying, intimidation and humiliation is
key to building group respect in the classroom setting. Talk openly about the impact of
being marginalized, ostracized and isolated. Help encourage communication between children
with different strengths or from different cultures. You can sometimes help this by simply
choosing who will be partners in an activity – pair two children who may not choose
to play together. When they work together and achieve together, some positive bond can be
created. Reach out and include marginalized kids in something. Openly treat the least
respected child in the classroom with understanding, dignity and respect. Children will
model your behaviors.
Respect for the fragility of life and the lethality of guns: By the time
we are 18, most of us have seen more than 200,000 acts of violence on television, yet few
of us truly know the impact of a bullet on the human body. Many children are desensitized
to violence and distant from the realities of death, disfigurement and disability. Help
them learn about the realities of violence. Bring a mother of a murdered child into the
classroom to help convey the true pain associated with violence. Try to show them what a
bullet really does to a body. A little research can teach children more about violence
than a lifetime of television.
Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D.
|
