School ShootingEssay Preview: School ShootingReport this essayOn April 20, 1999, two high school students by the names of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold carefully and maliciously planned a massacre at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. They killed fifteen people, one being a teacher, and left twenty-three in need of hospitalization before finally turning their guns on themselves. This event influenced Elliot Aronson to write his book, Nobody Left To Hate, in hopes to educate people on why such travesties occur within our schools, andДўв‚¬Ð²Ð‚Ñœmost importantlyДўв‚¬Ð²Ð‚Ñœwhat we as a society can do to prevent not only these acts of violence themselves, but to seek out the root of the problem by addressing what has led students of today to feel so neglected and misunderstood that they believe the only solution is to retaliate violently against their peers. Aronson applies a combination of his scientific research and his personal experience as both a teacher and a parent to contribute to the Ģ€Ð*”national dialogue on this issueĢ€ÐÑœ.
Time magazine recently reported that an average of twenty percent of teenagers attending high schools are taking medication to treat either depression or another psychiatric disorder. Latest government findings show that one out of five adolescents have seriously considered suicide, with one out of ten having actually attempted it. This statistic reveals a 400 percent increase since 1950. A main focal point in Nobody Left To Hate is to stress the fact our schools can and must play a crucial role in the prevention of student depression by creating an environment that both deters violence and helps to develop studentsДўв‚¬Ð²„Ñž characters as well as their intellects. Schools need to become a more inclusive and caring community for all students.
In February, the Association of American Schools of Social and Behavioral Science (AASBS) voted to prohibit all student mental health services and teacher-led programs from funding any state or local program that supports substance abuse, suicidal or depressive symptoms, or supports violence against students.
Under Title IX: Gender and Youth Violence Prevention, there are more than 9,000 different forms of abuse that are considered domestic abuse in U.S. child welfare laws. While many states and local agencies allow domestic and sibling abuse to continue, some allow it as long as they aren’t related and, therefore, only after investigation and a court order. In many cities as well, such programs are prohibited from receiving federal funding and cannot be funded for programs that prevent or help children from being victimized. The current legislation to ban most such services on the campuses of federal schools and local government (AIGS, Title IX) will eliminate all such funding in a “solarizing” vote this session, though the Senate will not make changes until a final bill is presented by the House (D-Md.).
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People—also known as the “AARP”—is an effort to ensure that every student receives the services and support that they desperately need with their transition from being colorblind or to having multiple parents who can care for them. In 2012 its members, many of whom are trans, attempted suicide while at an AARP meeting in New Orleans—one of the busiest times for the trans community after prom. The trans youth organization was formed in New York in 1999 to “save” the lives of trans students by making the black community more visible to transgender people in schools on college campuses.
The anti-bullying activities on the South Side of LA’s Downtown L.A. area have been especially effective in helping trans students navigate their transition into society. On July 2nd, two trans youth activists led a day-long vigil at the school’s Board of Directors to protest bullying. The first attempt to stop bullying had involved one of their students. After that, another trans youth attempted suicide while sitting behind him and attempting CPR. In the hours after that other trans youth suicide attempt in November last year, the LA Times reported, another trans woman attempted suicide at the L.A. Police Department (MPD), and one trans male student attempted suicide at Riverside High School (RHS).
Since many of the trans youth in the Los Angeles LGBT community and their family members cannot care for themselves (though these are still the primary targets for abuse, bullying, and suicide), many of them seek a different alternative. Many of those who have attempted suicide face discrimination that they never knew existed–including many who believe that they are oppressed. One transgender person I spoke with at a family reunion had sought the acceptance and support that many other trans family members have. He experienced some of the same discrimination—being able to take care of his girlfriend in high school, yet be ignored by