Essay, Research Paper: High School Shootings

Violence has been a problem in America since the colonies were first established. During the past ten years, there have been many acts of violence performed in schools throughout the nation. Many arguments have been brought forward as to what all of this violence has stemmed from. What has led these children to bring guns and bombs into schools and perform such horrifying acts? Littleton Massacre Seems So American by Charlie James and Chuck Shelton s When White Boys Kill, White Dads Fail both explain what these authors feel has caused some of these acts and how they feel they can prevented in the future. Chuck Shelton s argument is much more effective than that of Charlie James and gives good evidence and support of why these acts have happened and how they may be prevented.
In the Littleton Massacre Seems So American , James explains that children are growing up in a society that loves guns, worships the rights of higher class individuals, and a history of racism. He says there has been a terrible legacy left on all of us, Young, white, angry males who will never have the power over their lives of women and minorities that their grandfathers and fathers enjoyed and will always resent it. (James, 475) James then goes on to say that children see people in movies and on television using guns to get even and taking their own lives. The media has put people such as Kurt Cobain and Jimmy Dean in the spotlight, although they both had tragic deaths. If that s the only door they find open to becoming somebody, some of them will walk through it, put on a long trench coat and take a walk toward infamy and history. (James, 475) The founding fathers of this great nation where slave owners who killed Indians for their land, and all to become heroes. Wyatt Earp and others are kept alive by Hollywood, yet these people glorified the gun and man s right to bear and use weapons. (James, 475) James has laid out many excuses and reasons for the youth of American to be acting the way they are. He goes on to say that such acts seem, American .
Yet why blame all that happens on what children see on their television or what they learn in class. Where is the evidence that children see these things and feel this way? Throughout the past hundred years children were taught the same things in school and heard the same stories about Wyatt Earp and whoever else. Kids were not out setting bombs in schools or shooting classmates though. History is rapidly changing. Things are different now from ten years ago. If kids really want the power of their grandfathers and fathers, they why has this come such a huge problem just recently? Just as our ancestors had to fight for their land and did kill and own slaves to get it, they still made the world what it is today. Children should learn their history to respect what freedoms and privileges they have.
Charlie James says, We need to go back and clean up America s history and call a thug a thug, a killer a killer, an outlaw and crook a outlaw and crook. (James, 476) That Hollywood should not make them into anything else and portray them as the men that made America what it is today. Yet these people are the ones that made America. Although they may have killed and fought for what they got, they did it for freedom and so that we could live the way we do today. James believes that it is hard for Americans to accept African Americans and Hispanics into our culture and that it is easy to embrace idols such as Hitler who promotes male and white supremacy. There is no evidence that white males feel this way. Has James spoken to kids of this generation, especially the kids performing the school shooting? Where are the numbers and evidence that this plays a role in kids lives? He closes by saying We are giving mixed messages to our youth and we react in horror rather than embrace the America we once were rather than the America we say we are trying to become (James, 476) Now the author is putting words into his readers mouth, telling us what we are doing. Let the readers decide for themselves. Present your message clearly with support and statistics, and let the reader form their own opinions.