Virginia Tech: Facts the Media and Citizens Should Know

I was a few days shy of fifteen years old visiting my father in San Francisco when James Oliver Huberty killed twenty-one in a McDonalds outside of San Diego on July 18, 1984. I was from a small town, but on that day, geographically, I was relatively close to the crime. I was shocked and so was the nation. At least the media could get the facts straight back in 1984. Today, facts aren’t checked, American’s are misinformed, and some citizens retaliate against innocents who had nothing to do with the crime.

Virginia Tech’s recent tragedy was just another in a long string of workplace and school shootings that seem to make no sense. What is it about Americans, or our culture, that makes us so prone to violence of the worst kind? Are we prone to it in ways that other cultures are not? Or is it simply that we lack the civility to air our differences without such aggression? Perhaps a better question might be why our society demonizes those who seek treatment for mental disorders, depression or mere counseling. If it were not demonized as such, then we might be better prepared for handling those who need our help; and they would not be afraid to seek it when necessary.

Violence is an American pastime, dating back to the time of colonialism. That is why I was also disturbed by the way in which the media described Cho Seung-Hui’s desperate and selfish act as the “deadliest massacre in America.” On a college campus, of that I am certain, but I can think of many massacres in American history that dwarf this in spectacle, blood and sadness. Of course, you probably don’t remember those, because the media isn’t reminding you of them. 

The media is privy to same the historical documents that I am, so why the omissions? It occurs to me that this was stated by the media in this way to make the issue socially relevant and to keep people in fear. 

The Nat Turner Uprising cost over fifty lives, of which the website Globalsecurity.org, states, “The most famous African American revolt was Nat Turner’s rebellion of 1831. Set again in Virginia, Turner and five other enslaved cohorts began with the murder of Turner’s master’s family. As they traveled through the countryside, their numbers grew to nearly sixty, and they left behind them at least fifty murdered whites. After several days, Turner’s band was hunted down and destroyed. Turner was captured and later hung, though not before he described divine inspiration as his motive for rebellion…A feeling of paranoia and fear descended over Southern slaveholders as never before.” This event was before my time, but the paranoia sounds vaguely familiar to me.

From 1622–1890, whites killed thousands if not millions of American Indians. The Indian Wars were full of killings, culminating with the Wounded Knee Massacre on December 29, 1890, when three-hundred unarmed Sioux men, women and children were shot down by U.S. soldiers on a cold winter day. Their crime was practicing their religion as they were murdered.

If you’re looking for school related violence, then look no further to Andrew Kehoe. According to Crimelibrary.com, Mr. Kehoe bombed a school on May 18, 1927, where ”a total of 38 children were killed, 7 teachers died and 61 others were severely injured. It was the worst school violence in our nation’s history.” It is still the worst school violence by my count.

Those are but a few examples and there are many more. It’s not my intention to belittle what happened at Virginia Tech; quite the opposite. I would just like to see honest reporting, and everything kept in perspective so that we might actually effect change for the better. Cho committed a horrible crime and I am truly sad for all the victims, their families, and those who have to pick up the pieces. We should never have to live through this kind of tragedy, and if we’re not careful, it will happen again and again. Maybe we cannot help those who choose violence as their last act, but we can at least choose how we react to it, as well as be prepared in advance as to minimize the lives lost.

Only two days after the attack occurred, the UK Times Online reported that Korean Americans are fearful of retaliation. Lee Seung Wook, the head of the Virginia Tech Korean Student Association, said: “I am worried that the Americans will treat all Asian students, including Koreans, as criminals.”

And who could blame Mr. Wook for being fearful? It took mere days for some American’s to retaliate against Muslims and Jews in America; burning synagogues, mosques and killing civilians after 9/11/01. The New York Times stated on September 14, 2001, “People of Middle Eastern and South Asian descent, or even those who appear to be, are increasingly becoming targets of harassment and violence by civilians and of intense scrutiny by police officers under pressure to track down suspects in terrorist attacks; all across nation, there are reports of arson, personal attacks and police stopping men in Middle Eastern-style head coverings; incidents are increasing despite many interfaith prayer services and calls from Pres Bush and other officials for public not to single out anyone because of religion, race or ethnic origin; contributing to problems for some ethnic Americans is that police are searching for suspects of Middle Eastern and Indian origin.”

Perhaps I am a bit more desensitized by violence as I was when I as fourteen years of age, but still shocked that our country has done little to treat the mental illnesses that cause people to harm others. From a social perspective, I am saddened that our media continually get the facts incorrect.Instead of focusing on the problem at hand, Americans tend to look for someone to blame, usually the wrong party, and lynch them. Perhaps this is a small percentage of the small town mentality, but the effects are the same, nonetheless. These mob rules invoke more suffering that is unneeded, which perpetuates more violence and stereotypes. If this is how American’s choose to solve their differences, and are at their finest, I find it unacceptable.