No More Bullies by Frank Peretti

as James 1:14–15 warns, the thought becomes an act, and the act brings forth death.
    Finally, on April 20, 1999, Hitler’s 110th birthday, he can carry out his most gruesome fantasy. And what better place than the school, where everyone, from the parents and teachers on down, has all the power, and he doesn’t? What better place than in the high-school cafeteria, where students once surrounded Eric and Dylan and squirted ketchup packets all over them, laughing at them and calling them faggots while teachers watched and did nothing? 2
    And he can leave behind an e-mailed suicide note to the police (allegedly written by Eric Harris):
    . . . Your children, who have ridiculed me, who have chosen not to accept me, who have treated me like I am not worth their time, are dead. THEY ARE ________ DEAD. Surely you will try to blame it on the clothes I wear, the music I listen to, or the way I choose to present myself— but no. Do not hide behind my choices. You need to face the fact that this comes as a result of YOUR CHOICES. Parents and Teachers, YOU [fouled] UP. You have taught these kids to be gears and sheep. To think and act like those who came before them, to not accept what is different. YOU ARE IN THE WRONG. I may have taken their lives and my own—but it was your doing. Teachers, Parents, LET THIS MASSACRE BE ON YOUR SHOULDERS UNTIL THE DAY YOU DIE. . . . 3
    Everyone has his or her own theory. Here is mine: Simply put, I believe that what happened at Columbine was the result of a wounded spirit.
    Although the authorship of the above suicide note is in question, as are many details surrounding that day, to me, in the overarching scheme of things, it doesn’t really matter. Whoever wrote it pegged the problem. We now have in our society myriad young people and adults who have been deeply wounded by the demeaning words or actions of authority figures or peers.
    It is no secret that kids on the fringes of the cool crowd of Columbine endured their share of taunts and abuse. They were called faggots, were bashed into lockers, and had rocks thrown at them. They were shoved, pelted with pop cans or cups of sticky soda, splattered with mashed potatoes and ketchup, even sideswiped by cars while they rode their bikes to or from school.
    One anonymous teen spoke of waking on school days with a knot in his stomach and the dread of having to face more humiliation at school. He would avoid certain hallways and even make his way to classes outside the school building to escape being ridiculed or bashed against lockers. 4 He knew Harris and Klebold were being tormented as well, and he said, “I’m not saying what they did was OK, but I know what it’s like to be cornered, pushed day after day. Tell people that we were harassed and that sometimes it was impossible to take. Tell people that . . . eventually, someone was going to snap.” 5
    I know how that feels. Maybe you do too.
    Why is it so important that we address the problem of bullying and other demeaning attitudes and behaviors in our society? Because one in four bullies will end up in the criminal correction system. 6 Because those who have been wounded often become those who wound others. Because we could be allowing the creation of more monsters—the kind you never see, never expect, until they snap and take desperate, violent measures. And all of us—those who have been wounded as well as those who wound others— need healing, forgiveness, and a new heart attitude toward our fellow human beings.
    No longer can we hide our heads in the sand and pretend that atrocities such as Columbine don’t happen in our backyard. No longer can we live in denial, pretending that abuse does not occur in our family, church, or workplace.
    It’s time for change.

FINDING A VOICE

Chapter Five
    L ong before I became a published author, I was a public speaker. I spoke at youth rallies, retreats, Bible camps, church banquets, you name it. I did