Cliques and Outsiders

Cliques and Outsiders

Cliques and Outsiders The Emotional Trauma That is Fitting In Be afraid. Be very afraid. Wipe that goofy smile off your face. Whether you know it or not, that clawing, itching, quaking sensation seething beneath your skin is the feeling churning inside you every time someone of a superior clique comes rumbling down the halls, a contemptuous sneer playing on his lips. But whatever you do, keep that fear under wraps. You do not need to be shoved into your locker or called derisive names again. Cliques in high schools are a microcosm of a society dominated by hierarchies. Look around. It is hard to find one fully united school, devoid of the intricate social castes. In the wake of the now-infamous Columbine High School shooting, society was mercilessly slapped with the harsh

effects of cliques, and temporarily forced to reexamine the complicated social hierarchy that confronts students during their most formative years. As much of a tragedy as it was, few fail to see and perhaps, understand it from the point of view of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the two suspects. Yes, they do have names. They were not entirely the vile, violent, inhuman maniacs that society has carelessly made them out to be. They were real people. Real people repeatedly called outcasts in their school, a community of cliques. There are few schools that deviate from the social moldings of Columbine High School. Columbine is Anyschool in Anytown. This is what Cliques think of Geeks, Nerds, and Dorks. Just take a look at the clique-infested waters of my school.

Except no one seems to want to admit the existence of these sharp-toothed tribes. Like every other school, the jocks and cool people are at the top of the food chain - the s...

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...ngle day, it takes just one more little spark to set it all off. After all, human beings are not wired for abuse. After the Columbine shooting, it has become apparent to society that in a snap, social lives can be ravagely twisted into a crumpled matter of life and death.

Eric and Dylan rose from their former humiliation and turned the tables on those who ostracized them. The malicious members of the irked tribes have fallen. Following the April 20 tragedy, there came a long string of copycat threats in various middle and high schools across North America. To the culprits of these threats, Eric and Dylan are essentially heroes worthy of their respect. They opened the doors for these embittered teenage outcasts, as well as the eyes of many, screaming in the now-trembling faces of their tormentors, "See, we will seek revenge for every injustice you've ever done to us".