Thirteen years ago today, high school seniors Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 12 students, one teacher and injured approximately 20 others in what would infamously become known as the Columbine High School Massacre.
On April 20, 1999, the two boys planted two propane bombs concealed by duffel bags in the school cafeteria. As the first lunch shift began, they anticipated the explosions, waiting outside in their cars to open fire on students and faculty escaping out of the building's main entrances. When the bombs failed to detonate at their scheduled time, Harris and Klebold headed for the West entrance of the school, armed with a series of guns, bombs and knives.
The most violence occurred in the school's library after the two had shot students and faculty on the West lawn, West staircase and in the North and South hallways. By the time Harris and Klebold had entered the library, students and faculty were hiding under various desks and tables.
Several up-close and distanced shootings took place that resulted in 10 deaths and various other severe and minor injuries. Many of the injuries occurred from open fire towards tables and desks, while many of the deaths resulted from close-range, personal killings. One student, Cassie Bernall, was said to have been hiding under a table when Harris approached it, crouched down, said, "peek-a-boo" and shot her in the head.
The initial rumor of Cassie Bernall's death actually presented a more disturbing (if that is even possible) interaction between her and Harris. National news media hummed with the mortifying story of the girl who was asked, "Do you believe in God?" and upon her admittance that she did, Harris shot her. With further investigation, most of the evidence points to the incident actually occurring between another student, Valeen Schnurr, and Klebold.
Interviews with survivors suggest that Klebold overheard Schnurr utter, "God help me." He then approached her and mockingly asked her if she believed in God. As she stumbled for which answer would please Klebold and save her life, she finally responded with the affirmative, and Klebold proceeded to ask her why. She simply stated that she did because that was what her family believed. Klebold went on to load his gun, taunt her and then walk away.
After briefly searching numerous other hallways, the two shooters returned to the library where they eventually simultaneously shot themselves. The aftermath of America's deadliest high school killing provoked immense pursuit for the rationale behind the killers' actions.
Three months after the massacre, the FBI organized a group of the world's most prominent psychiatrists and psychologists to investigate Harris and Klebold's motives. Their results indicated that the two differed quite substantially. Harris was revealed to be a cold, meticulous, homicidal psychopath with a superiority complex in which he felt anger and annoyance with the rest of "inferior" society. Klebold was described as depressive, hotheaded and suicidal.
Countless controversies also arose from the terror that erupted that day at Columbine. Questions regarding schools' stances on bullying, the possible desensitization from violent video games (both killers were known for excessively playing Doom), and even the possible fault in music, specifically Marilyn Manson, were brought to light and thoroughly examined. Many opinions still clash on what factor or combination of factors ultimately led to their decision to kill.
The Columbine Massacre and its aftermath, demonstrates the common, unsettling issue in which society often waits to witness a horrifying tragedy, before attempting to understand and adress a current issue.
While the incident may have finally opened peoples' eyes to these dangerous possibilities of bullying, violence in the media, and mentally troubled youth, it is still disappointing that such a deadly tragedy had to occur to provoke investigation of these possible issues.
Perhaps such actions could not have prevented the murders, but it seems that reactivity rather than proactivity was a leading cause in the tragic events that occurred on this day in history in 1999.
- Freestone is a sophomore from Brownsburg, Ind., majoring in history and biology.
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