Brian Deneke - ten years on

Amarillo.com | Local News: Short life remembered 12/09/07

Family still strong after 10 years

Brian Deneke looked different than most teenagers.

He and his friends wore colored spiked hair, body jewelry and non-traditional clothing. They were called "punks."

Their appearance varied greatly from their counterparts, the stylish "preps." On the night of Dec. 12, 1997, punks and preps brawled in the parking lot of Western Plaza Shopping Center in a dispute that spilled over from IHOP, 2100 S. Western St.

When the confusion cleared, Deneke, 19, lay dead, run over by a Cadillac driven by 17-year-old Dustin Camp.

Deneke's death and Camp's ensuing legal saga drew the national press and television spotlight to Amarillo.

Ten years after his death, Deneke's story still impacts lives, said his father, Mike Deneke of Amarillo.

"I'm somewhat surprised by all the attention 10 years later," Mike Deneke said. "There are approximately 25 events going on across the nation in tribute to Brian this weekend. We never expected that.

"We hope because of all the attention there have been some changes. I hope it's opened some eyes about how people feel about people who look different, dress different."

Mike Deneke said some young people say their differences are more tolerated these days. He also hears from the other side.

"I hear from high school kids who talk about how they get picked on because they're not part of the 'in crowd' - dress a little different, that kind of thing," he said.

"Brian has become a symbol of people who have experienced those sort of things. I think that's why the story still has such a big impact," the father said.

Another part of the story that produced a big impact was the controversial sentence Camp received after a jury convicted him of manslaughter in August 1999. He received 10 years of probation and a $10,000 fine.

"We were not happy with the original sentence," Mike Deneke said.

Camp ruined his chance to avoid prison when Canyon police arrested him in June 2001 on charges of evading arrest and being a minor in possession of alcohol. In September 2001, 108th District Judge Abe Lopez sentenced Camp to eight years in prison for the probation violations.

The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles twice denied parole for Camp before granting his early release in July 2006.

Mike Deneke said he never has had contact with Camp or his family, who left Amarillo.

"We do not know where he is at," Mike Deneke said. "He was paroled into the El Paso area."

Mike Deneke and his wife, Betty Deneke, said they hold no bitterness.

"Nothing is going to bring Brian back or undo what happened that night," Mike Deneke said. "I hope he (Camp) has a chance to move on with his life and do something good out of it."

Betty Deneke said, "I don't have any bitterness anymore. I did at first. I don't anymore through the grace of God. He helped me get through it. I just don't want it to happen to anyone else.

"Ten years later, we still feel like he's still with us, still a part of us."

Betty Deneke said she hopes that through the death of her son, people will learn "to treat other people the way they would want to be treated. Respect their individuality."

Said Mike Deneke, "We have tried to move on. Brian wouldn't want us to be bitter. He would want us to move on.

"Out of the tragedy there has been some good that has come: an awareness of the consequences of actions of intolerance."

US Police target alternative teen

Mother claims police bullied their way into her home | Battle Creek Enquirer - www.battlecreekenquirer.com - Battle Creek, Mich.:
Sunday, December 9, 2007

Trace Christenson/The Enquirer

Charity Young holds her son, Matthew, with her son, Wesley Gilbert, at the front door of their home.

A Battle Creek woman complained Friday that police used strong-arm tactics when they raided her home this week searching for bomb-making materials.

Charity Young, 33, said police with guns and wearing black masks pushed through her front door and scared her and her 2-year-old son as they searched the house during an investigation into bomb threats at Battle Creek Central High School.

"They grabbed my shirt and were screaming in my face," Young said. "I didn't have time to cooperate because I didn't know what they wanted me to do."

She said she was pushed into a chair, aggravating a back problem, as police searched her house.

Officers pulled down an American flag on the front door, stepped on her couch and left the doors open to the winter air, she said.

A security officer and law enforcement student, Young said the incident has changed her attitude about police.

"I am thinking about giving up my dream. I wanted to be an officer, but if they are training officers to terrorize women and small children, I will not do it," she said.

Members of the Emergency Response Team and the Bomb Unit obtained the warrant to search the house in the 200 block of Laurel Avenue for evidence in recent bomb threats at Battle Creek Public Schools, Lt. Duane Knight said after the raid.

Nine threats have been reported at the high school and two middle schools since Nov. 26, including two on Nov. 28 that canceled classes at the high school.

Detective Sgt. Todd Madsen said the search warrant was obtained after at least three students reported hearing Young's son, Wesley Gilbert, 16, and a sophomore at Battle Creek Central make statements about the bomb threats.

"He made statements about making bombs," Madsen said Friday. "We raided the home for the protection of the community."

Police did not find any bomb-making materials, Madsen said, and nothing was seized.

But he said the investigation is continuing and he expects investigators to seek a warrant for Gilbert.

Gilbert said he did not make any statements about bombs and is not responsible for the bomb threats.

He said he has been targeted because he wears Goth clothing and because he was vocal last year about the lack of security at the high school.

Gilbert was suspended from school Thursday after several of his friends threatened two of the students who alleged they heard his comments about bombs. He said he did not encourage his friends' actions.

Madsen said officers knocked on the door and waited for Young to open it before they entered the house. He denies officers were rough with Young, her 2-year-old son, Matthew, or her boyfriend, Bert Howe, 43.

"This was the slowest and most patient and methodical entry we have made in 1,000 entries of the Emergency Response Team," he said. "But we are not going to turn a blind eye to this. We want to stay on top of it."

The Legacy of Columbine continues.

Brian Deneke - Tenth anniversary

Ten years later and the crimes go on but he is still remembered. Brian was run over ten years ago in a horrible crime.

Punk killing raises awareness
The Ranger, TX - Nov 29, 2007

Sometimes, it takes losing a life to create awareness. In 1997, what many considered a hate crime resulted in the death of a 19-year-old named Brian Deneke. Deneke lived in the Texas Panhandle town of Amarillo, where he and his friends liked to skate and listen to hardcore punk music.

Deneke, also known as "Sunshine" by his friends in the local punk scene, sported a faded blue mohawk and leather jacket. They were different, and as a result, they were considered outcasts in a town full of high school football players and jocks.

There had been constant name-calling in the halls of Amarillo and Tascosa high schools, and it was common for fights to break out between the two groups.

About 11:30 p.m. Dec. 12, 1997, Deneke and his friends were hanging out in an International House of Pancakes parking lot when a fight that would end in tragedy broke out.

Dustin Camp, a 17-year-old junior varsity football player at Tascosa High School, got behind the wheel of his 1983 Cadillac and jumped a median, running over and killing Deneke.

Camp was charged with manslaughter and received 10 years probation and a $1,000 fine.

"A Night for Brian Deneke," a tribute concert, will be from 6 p.m.-2 a.m. Dec. 8 at The Roadhouse Saloon, 6159 FM 78.

DJs Anthony Prater and Dina Hernandez, who host Punk Rock 101 on KSYM 90.1 FM from 9 p.m.-11 p.m. Tuesdays, got together with The Roadhouse Saloon and New Goon Productions to help organize the event.

"This hits close to home because that's the kind of scene I'm into," Prater said. "I guess Brian was just a nonconformist in a conservative town, and what happened was unfortunate."

The goal of the event is to encourage tolerance, dialogue and civilized respect for different lifestyles and perspectives, and at the same time, discourage violence and prevent acts of retaliation.

"I hate the word tolerance. I prefer the word acceptance," Prater said. "Tolerating them isn't enough; people should accept others regardless of their appearance or likes and dislikes."

To honor the memory of Deneke, the event is sponsored in cities throughout the United States and Canada, and features local and national punk bands - music Deneke liked to listen to. Musical guests will include Graded By X, The Dreadnauts, The Dirty Hacks, Terrible Teardrops, Silent Minority, Sewer Rats, Pavel Demon and The Revenant, Second To None, Filthy, The Muffdivers, The Dementers, The Dispicables and Deneke's favorite band, Destroy Everything.

The event is $10 at the door or $5 with a new unwrapped toy to be donated to Toys For Tots.

Proceeds will go to the National Organization of Parents of Murdered Children and the Esperanza Center for Peace & Justice.

Hunt for killer of skater hero continues

See earlier post Skateboarder dies as hero.


Victim's family seeks help

Reward offered for information in slaying

By Wes Woods II, Staff Writer

Article Created: 11/29/2007 09:51:20 PM PST

FONTANA - Friends and family of Michael Lee Reed Jr. gathered with police on Thursday at the same location where he was killed last week.They had a request.

For those with knowledge about his killing to come forward with the information.

They also offered a $15,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of his killer or killers.

Reed, 21, of Rialto was gunned down after attempting to save a friend on Nov. 21 at Fontana Skate Park. "This makes a difference," said his father, Mike Reed. "My son always practiced peace. He died for a cause."

Young Homes Chairman and CEO Reggie King offered up $10,000 while the city of Fontana gave $5,000.

With a poster board of Reed's image and skateboards hanging from the park's gate, Mike Reed joined Police Chief Larry Clark, Mayor Mark Nuaimi and Councilwoman Acquanetta Warren, asking those responsible to turn themselves in or for anyone with additional information to contact authorities.

Some of Michael Reed's friends - Anthony Bufkin, 18, of Moreno Valley; Vince Bowman, 22, and Sam Arellano, 18, both of Fontana - said they would never forget his humanity or skateboarding skills.

Bowman said Michael Reed spent 12 hours a day working toward becoming a professional skater. He had

Because of Michael Reed's positive influences on other skateboarders, friends and family said the skate park should be renamed the Mike Reed Skate Park and a statue of him should be erected.

At about 8:35 p.m. Nov. 21, a male between the ages of 15 and 18 went to the skate park with three other males to solicit some of the skaters for money and see if they were selling marijuana, according to police.

The male approached John DeLaCruz of Bloomington, grabbed him by the neck, and pointed a handgun at him, according to police.

Michael Reed went to DeLaCruz's aid and tried to convince the male to leave his friend alone, according to police.The male shot Michael Reed in the torso. The four fled.Michael Reed was transported to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Decker said the homicide was the city's seventh this year.

DailyBulletin.com - Skaters gather to mourn victim

12/04/2007 09:32:00 PM PST

FONTANA - About 30 skaters converged Tuesday afternoon at Jack Bulik Park to informally mourn their friend, Michael Lee Reed Jr., in the same spot where he was gunned down Nov. 21.

They decided to gather to console one another and remember their friend before heading to Principles of Faith Christian Center on Merrill Avenue for the 4:30 p.m. viewing.

"This is where we always meet," said Paul Deviny, 22, gesturing to the paved skate ramps. "This is the temple, the church. Welcome to our congregation."

They mainly stood in silence, leaning against parked cars.

Some took to their boards, busting tricks.

Others talked about Reed and his signature move, a switch backside 360 kick flip.

He was the park's best skater, the only one who could land the move, they said.

Reed occasionally skated all the way from his family's home in Rialto to the park, friend Johnny Rivera said. Most of the time, he would spend the night sleeping on Rivera's floor.

"He'd always say, `Hey, let me borrow a shirt,"' said Rivera, 21. "Sometimes I'd give him shoes. He always needed socks."

Rivera lives only three blocks from the park. Staying with Rivera allowed Reed to meet his goal of skating everyday, all day.

Reed wanted to get a sponsor and become a professional, friends said.

They called him their "body guard," "a powerhouse" and a "a peacemaker."

Patricide was it motivated by listening to metal or horrendous sexual abuse?

Back in July in New York Brigitte Harris murdered her father. It seems her crime was motivated by a lifetime of horrific sexual abuse. There is an interesting new article on the case here which gives the full background:

village voice > news > The Goth Girl, Her Preppy Sister, Sexual Abuse and Murder by Maria Luisa Tucker


"Brigitte Harris's MySpace page portrays a young woman with interests ranging from musical theater and sewing to heavy metal and the occult."

In the aftermath of her father's murder, Carleen has been talking a lot. She launched a public-relations campaign to "Save Brigitte." Within 36 hours of the murder, she had hired star defense attorney Arthur Aidala and told the world that both she and Brigitte had been victims of a pedophile father who regularly and repeatedly raped them from a very young age. Within a week, Carleen had set up a website collecting donations for a defense fund and had held press conferences to round up support. The murder of their "monster" father was simply karma, she told Montel Williams and audiences at a candlelight vigil. If Brigitte snapped, she implied, it was their father who had pushed her.

Thanks to Carleen's efforts, a small crowd of supporters have lined up behind Brigitte, including U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and New York State Senators Eric Adams and Diane Savino.

TV report just after the arrest.




It seems likely that Brigitte's interest in metal music and gothic culture will play an important part in the ongoing coverage of the case as it does in this article.

Take a look at the details accumulated from her myspace The Original Dark Angel and Vampire freaks profiles in this article which sugges6s that listening to a metal sparked her quest for vengeance:

Brigitte Harris Accused of Murdering and Castrating Her Stepfather ...

Harris describes her interests in more detail within her VampireFreaks.com profile:

"[Interests include] everything within the gothic culture, the night time, graveyards by nightfall. I am a thoughtful person when it comes to things. I don't talk a lot, I love the gothic culture, and I like wearing things that resemble medieval times. In my free time I like to read, listen to music, go [to] the movies, Broadway shows, extreme sports and swimming."

Yet if you look at Brigitte's own description of her music shows why she likes metal it has a lot to do with her own musical ability as much with dark reality of the bleak world some metal lyrics describe:

I love all Genres of Musis. My fav. genre is Rock;mostly Metal. I love Rock b/c i Relate to what most bands sing(or scream) about. i also just love the fact that they play their own instruments. thats why i love Classical and Opera. my fav. instruments R the drums,cello, mandarin and Chinese guitar. I have been playing the clarinet since the 4th grade. OTEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Linkin Park ^_^, A7X-Avenged 7 Fold, Pinkly Smooth, Opiate 4 the Masses, Kittie, Korn, System of a Down,The Used, My Chemical Romance,Sick AS Monday, Disturbed, Staind, Lacuna Coil, As I Lay Dying, Evanescence, Pagoda, 3 Days Grace, Letter Kills, Killswitch Engage, Breaking Benjamin, The Rasmus, Muse, The Cure, Rob Zombie, HIM,
Slayer, Atreyu, Cradle of Filth, Godsmack, Metallica, A Perfect Circle, Rammstein,
Static-X, Mudvayne, Underoath, Bleed the Dream, Senses Fail, 9 inch Nails, Drowning Pool, Story of the Year, Shinedown, Silvertide, Papa Roach,
Chevelle,... Tchaikovsky, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Bach, Imogen Heap, Bizet, Andrea Bocelli, Leopold Stokowski

She also loves many classical composers yet strangely no article mentions her liking for Mozart as a significant fact in the murders. [I note that Brigitte doesn't actually mention any Gothic rock bands here but discriminating between metal and goth can be tricky for media people.] How abou the fact that Brigitte unlike her sister wanted go open about the abuse rather than hiding it?

The reality is that Brigitte seems to have killed her father because he abused her. The music she listened too and the films she watched are irrelevant, likely to be found on thousands of similar profiles on the net, if she listened to rap or country the result would have been much the same. I suspect that members of the family who refuse to accept that the father could have abused his two daughters are likely to use such details of metal culture in a negative fashion.

Meanwhile, as the case heads toward trial—the plea agreement that the defense had hoped for has yet to materialize—Brigitte's family has become increasingly polarized. Carleen and her maternal relatives have portrayed Brigitte as a victim who finally snapped, while Eric's side of the family denies any sexual abuse and say the sisters planned their father's murder for ulterior motives. The family split was apparent during a court date last month. Seven members of Eric's family traveled from Rhode Island and Colorado to attend a brief hearing at Queens Criminal Court, where they exchanged information and hugs with the prosecutor. Carleen was notably absent; in her place was an advocate from a domestic-violence nonprofit that helps those in trouble for retaliating against their abusers.

Link to the

Save Brigitte Harris website

Razor incident after Emo taunt

From such a short report it is difficult to tell what is going on here. The girl might just have a self harm problem and no interest in emo style or music given the popular stereotype. Was this the first time she had been taunted in this way or was bullying part of her life?

Girl arrested after slashing on school bus - Northwest Florida Daily News
Thursday November 29th, 2007

CRESTVIEW — A 12-year-old girl faces felony charges for lashing out at another student with a razor blade on Halloween. The incident happened on a school bus, according to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. The girl, a sixth-grader, told investigators she was upset at the other student for threatening to tell her mother that she had been cutting herself.

She became even madder when other kids on the bus began “calling her an ‘Emo,’” according to the report.

She said she lashed out at him with the blade but didn’t intend for any injury.
The boy’s jeans were sliced and his parent said his leg was injured. A deputy did not notice any visible wound the day after the incident. The girl was charged with aggravated battery and is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 26.

Farewell Goth Help Us

Been to draft this post for a while.

Goth Help Us International folded at the end of Ocober and was a campaigning organization which only started in April 2006 by Rebecca K Hohm. They had their detractors in recent times, but they also did some good things and help raise awareness that goths can be useful members of the community. Considering the hugely negative press goth often gets, especially in the States they have to be applauded for that. The San Diego branch appeared in this report on the local news.

This is part of the introduction to what was their website before it was taken down:

Goth Help Us" was founded in April 2006 in the United States and is a grassroots effort to help humanity. Hopefully we'll help the world realize that goths are much more than strange or odd people. We want to try to prove to everyone that goths are also compassionate, loving, and extremely caring people. We also know that depression plagues many of us, and the only true way to rid yourself of depression is to go out and help other people. Maybe by helping others, we'll find our smiles again.

This organization is about wanting to help people and to network with other goths in hopes of trying to help humanity in general. We are organizing blood drives. We are helping the homeless. We are making dreams come true for sick children. We are helping fund animal shelters. We are helping to beautify our cities again. We are helping each other and helping others.

We just want to spread peace and also try to help stop the violence against goths.

We collaborate with already well-established charitable organizations, such as The Red Cross, The Humane Society, and Habitat for Humanity. We are NOT a charity. We are a humanitarian organization. We are a peaceful and compassionate sect of people and now we're proving it to the world.

Here are some of the projects they were involved in.

* Drivers for ride shares in a Need-A-Goth program for people under the influence
* Escorting and assisting grieving elderly individuals at cemeteries
* Food service at homeless shelters for adults and children
* Blood drives
* Toy drives
* Beach clean-ups
* Housing cleanup for the disabled
* Animal care for the Humane Society as a volunteer caregiver walking and exercising animals, in food preparation, or even protesting of animal cruelty

Goth Help Us were involved in the early stages of the aftermath of the Sophie Lancaster case and helped tell people about it. Their collapse came about partially over arguments over the implications of the whole Hate Crimes debate which the death of Sophie caused. It was Goth Help Us who originally raised the idea of using Hate Crime legislation to address the issue and promoted it. Their campaign got somewhat carried away in some of the imagery they used. As we noted here before that whole issue aroused strong feelings both positive and negative see Hate Crime and Subcultures - the debate.

It was from that idea the more successful hate crimes campaign in the UK developed.

From what I understand it seems that in raising the issue prominently the organization became internally divided. You can read a little about this here. The group also had external critics.

It is sad that an organization which in its short life did much good fell apart in such a way.

The San Diego Branch was particularly active and its organisation was prompted over a particularly nasty case of assault on some local goths:

Synchonicity is the best way to describe the chain of events that occurred to make Goth Help Us San Diego happen as it did. A negative act with positive repercussions. Goth Help Us as a whole is still a new organization and at the precise time that was necessary to get everything moving in the right direction, a wrong was done. Jim Howard, the current president of Goth Help Us San Diego, and a small group of friends and family were accosted on the street by a number of drunk, belligerent people. As Jim was assaulted it was made clear that he and his group was chosen due to their subculture affiliation. This can be otherwise known as a “hate crime.” The courts will not recognize this attack as a hate crime at this time.

This act came as a blow to the San Diego Goth community as the people that were involved in this attack were well respected members of the community. Alongside the choice of target, the Goth community is appalled that the courts will not recognize subcultures as a motivation for hate crime. Jim was, unfortunately, rushed to the hospital and had to undergo surgery in order to repair the damage that was done. Rather than acting in a similar fashion and attacking others, verbally, physically or any other way, Jim decided to act out and motivate the San Diego community to work together and help dispel the negative image that Goths have.

Here is the report on the case from Angst zine in September:

As many people in the Southern California region are aware, there has been a problem with violent crime against the Gothic community. None of us are certain precisely why this is, but we can guess; bad press, bad public image and misinformation undoubtedly top the list. The most notable California violence was the attack on 4 San Diego Goths. Outside of the United States, two young Goths were attacked in the United Kingdom and one lost her life while the other, at the time of this writing, is still comatose. Alongside these two attacks there have been many other attacks large and small across the globe. The first thing that should be stated is that this is clearly hate motivated. There is no rationale that can be used to defend these mindless acts. In San Diego, California, though, justice has been served and a blow has been struck against the would-be attackers and dangers to the Gothic community.

After a year-long wait, the four Goths from San Diego finally found justice in the courts. They were attacked by a Navy man and his brother, which resulted in the hospitalization of Jim Howard, the current Goth Help Us - San Diego Chapter President. As of the end of August, the Navy man that attacked Jim, his wife and two friends was found guilty by a jury of his peers on 4 related counts, 2 of which were felonious. The brother is set for a trial potentially for 2 felony counts. Furthermore, the San Diego District Attorney should most definitely get a mention as they fought for the rights of the attacked and the San Diego Gothic community. *

Here is an article on the group and an interview with its founder.
The Denver branch is continuing as an independent organisation as is San Diego under San Diego’s Gothic Volunteer Alliance (GVA). So locally the good work will continue.

Mix it up Day - USA

It was Mix It up day in the States yesterday an attempt to break down divisions between racial and social groups, including subcultural ones. It is a long standing idea in the States starting in 2002. Now more than 10,000 schools are involved.

ABC News 4 Charleston - Mixing Up Racial And Social Divides At Hanahan Middle School
Tuesday November 13, 2007 5:40pm Reporter: Renee Williams

Hanahan, S. Carolina - Hanahan Middle School participates in Mix It Up at Lunch Day, a national social experiment aimed at teaching students tolerance.

Think back, way back to your middle school lunch time. You’re sitting with the same friends, day in and day out and being a part of your group. Now imagine this- taking all of that and turning it upside down.

“Students are going to come in. They're going to take the initiative to sit with someone they don't know well,” Elizabeth Scarbrough says.

She’s the one who organized the school’s Mix it Up at Lunch Day. In other words, they’re mixing it up and changing who they talk to everyday. The students are also making new friends while breaking up old cliques.

“Some kids are left out they don't have many friends and then you have some groups who are friends with everybody,” eighth grader Nick Zerbst says.

Mix it Up at Lunch aims to break the harsh social divide of middle school.
The experiment tries to melt the jocks with the goths and the popular kids.
It’s not always easy to just strike up a conversation with someone you don't know. To help break the ice, the kids came up with questions to ask each other like do you like Clemson or Carolina or do you play sports? Even with the ice breakers the nerves are obvious.

“People are trying to be popular. People feel left out they can't really make friends because they're all shy,” adds eighth grader Kenneth Spear.

Whether they’re shy or not, more than 200 students pledged to give it a try. “Here's the 6th grade doing it. It’s really working well. Maybe someone in a higher social status can bring them up,” Zerbst says.

Middle school kids typically divide themselves along gender, racial and economic lines. They learn those divides early on. So these kids are pledging and promising to cross age old boundaries, if only for one day. “These prejudices and these cliques actually start to form at age three to its very important that we catch them at the middle school age,” adds Scarbrough.

SPLCenter.org: Millions take part in fourth annual Mix It UpDecember 2005

Fourth- and 5th-graders in Sweetwater, Texas, embrace the spirit of Mix It Up.
(Bruno at Holly Kuper Photography)
SWEETWATER, Texas -- When 350 intermediate students Mixed It Up here, spirits rose as high as their red, white and blue helium balloons

"That's what I love about 4th- and 5th-graders," said school counselor and Mix It Up at Lunch Day facilitator Melissa Howard. "They are still so into everything."

In 2005, the number of participants also rose -- dramatically. Across the nation on November 15, and estimated four million students at 9,000 schools took part in the fourth annual Mix It Up at Lunch Day. That's a 50 percent increase from 2004, when 4 million students took part nationwide.

Mix It Up, part of the Center's Teaching Tolerance program, asks students to swap seats in the school cafeteria -- one of the most self-segregating settings in the nation. Football players sit with football players; cheerleaders, with cheerleaders. Band members at the table in the corner; Goths at one table; Spanish-speaking students at another.

Consider how a high school senior from Phoenix described her school cafeteria on this year's Mix It Up at Lunch Day: "That section over there is where the jocks usually sit, and this part by the benches is where the skaters are, and then the gangs are all along the walls."

A 9th-grader from Oregon took part in a discussion about school cliques on Mix It Up at Lunch Day and came away with a deeper understanding.

"I learned they (various school cliques) don't really talk to each other," she said. "It's important to get groups to mingle. In the real world, you have to mingle whether you want to or not."

On Mix It Up Day, clearly, some do not. In Philadelphia, one high school student called it "annoying." In Florida, one student called it "childish," labeling participants "losers."

"The resistance is a clear sign of why the program is so important," said Tafeni English, director of the Mix It Up program. "Mix It Up is about social boundaries, and those boundaries don't dissolve in a single day or a single moment. But every time we get some students talking and thinking about the boundaries, we're taking steps in the right direction."...

POEM: Vegetable Soup

April 19, 2006 -- Two students at King George High School in Virginia write about the various social cliques in their school.

by Katie Newton and Laura McKinnon


King George High School is full of cliques

"The Wall," the Goths and the hot chicks.

It's hard enough to be a teen

Without having to deal with these kids - they're mean!

First of all, you've got "The Wall"

A sea of darkness, always having a ball.

Getting their kicks from picking on us

They laugh and they point, and they even cuss.

I know the teachers aren't hearing impaired

But they won't say anything 'cause they're too scared.

The Goths are the next crowd; they stay to themselves

Some dress like vampires, and some like dark elves.

They hate their lives, and the world, and us,

They won't be happy until their wounds seep pus.

The hot chicks are last because they're the worst

If you're not skinny and blonde consider yourself cursed.

Malibu Barbies with their fake tans

Always succeeding in stealing our "mans."

I want to break free

And then there are ones like me.

I have a friend in every group,

Like a giant pot of vegetable soup.

Carrots, peas and noodles, too,

I like being vegetable soup.

What kind of soup are you?

Some interesting comments from kids involved in the past. Lots more here:

Don't hate what you don't understand
Keala

Every one knows how the "goths" and the "preps" have hated each other for so many years now. I am considered a goth at my school, but I have friends from virtually every clique. I hate how people think if you are a certain way, you have to be friends with just that group! I dislike how the jocks make fun of my friends and how they torment us because we have an opinion. Most people think "goths" are suicidal, and that they worship Satan. Satanists worship Satan not "goths." I judge people but it's because when they hang out with others they become like that friend. I just hate how everyone hates "goths." Just because we are different doesn't mean you have to hate us. A great man once said "To be great is to be misunderstood" (Ralph Waldo Emerson) just as being different is to be great!

Another way to Mix It Up
Lindsey
It is true there are many cliques at our school, like the so-called 'gangster table' or the 'nerd table', but our lunch is only 25 minutes long, so one day would not create friendships. If it were my idea I would have it happen at least one Tuesday a month because once a year really wouldn't cut it, if you think about it. If it was held every Tuesday, then you would be forced to talk to them or exclude yourself, which shouldn't happen by the way. But instead of sitting at a new table every Tuesday, you could sit at the same color table and create friendships with those people, and after like 3 months they switch everyone, something like that.

Mix doesn't work
Bob
I HATE MIX IT UP DAY! ITS STUPID AND IT NEVER WORKS!

It was hard, but I did it
Jackie
Today at my school we had Mix It Up Day. It was very fun because we got to meet new people! Usually, I sit with my best friend, Marilyn. We always sit at the same table. It was very hard to do this but I did it. I am proud that I was brave enough to sit with totally different people whom I didn't know. Thank you for making this day exist!

Being judged sucks
Kim
In my school, people judge you by one thing: where you shop and what you wear. It's not, oh, you are so nice, or eh, you're really mean to everyone, or, you annoy me on purpose, it's that you shop here. I for one, shop at Hot Topic, a store that has been deemed rather "Gothic," but yet, has more leather alternatives than places like Wet Seal and Mervyn's, and most of the makeup in there has not been tested on animals. I am a vegetarian, in case you were wondering why I am talking about that sort of thing. People think I'm Gothic just because I shop there.

Most cliques in my school, really aren't defined by a name, it's just certain people. There's the normal people, who are more often than not popular; the freaks, who are just plain rude to everyone; the loser/skaters who made do good in school, but half of them are just, well, rather, odd; there are the skaters, the people that I hang out with some; the preps, the people who will do anything to make themselves look perfect; the potheads, people who do drugs; the sugar junkies, people who are just plain crazy; there's the jocks, who are obsessed with any kind of sport; fashionistas, people who love clothes; and then, there's what I've been defined as, a Gothic. Really though, I am a punk rock enviro skater. These cliques, aren't people I have judged. It's just where they fall in my school according to what they wear and how they act. I wear bondage pants (the big pants that have D-rings and straps on them) and because of that I'm Gothic. If you noticed, I put nothing down on Environmentally Conscious people, that's because I'm really the only one who cares about that in my school. I'm just me, and being judged differently sucks. It sucks hard.

Don't make us do it again
Damien
I'm using this little thing to tell you what I think about Mix It Up. I think its a waste of time and is not going to do anything but cause more problems. NO student I have talked to bout this said it was a good idea. There is talk of skipping lunch to avoid having to participate and also talk of deliberate defiance. I am one of the students who will NOT participate. I won't be forced to sit with people I don't like. I don't like people, not because of their differences, but because of their personality. If I was someone who sat by myself at lunch I wouldn't want people to sit with me because they had to, rather because they want to. I know I speak for a good 75% of my school when I say this is lame... don't make us do it again.

Lowest social group
Brittany
Mix It Up Day was ok for some students, but let me tell you, Mix It Up Day at Lunch did not go so well for me. I tried sitting with the "preppy" kids. But they just made fun of me and told me to go away. It doesn't matter how much you think it's a good thing, when a "goth" sits with a "prep" it doesn't go over very smoothly. It was a success for the older kids to sit with freshman and everything - kids sitting with other kids that aren't really different than them. But this was just... yeah. When the lowest social group sat with the highest at my school, it was not a good lunch.

PeaceJam brings food to Mix
Cornelia

I go to school at Tohatchi High School in New Mexico. I am in 11th grade. My group, PeaceJam, brought food for the people to eat in the classrooms. The students said it was nice to meet different students at our school. We got all the athletes, skaters and Goths to sit with the people they don't know. We had a good time with the students. But some of the students said they were shy because they don't know the students they were sitting by.

Mix was awesome
Kileigh

Mix-it-up-at-lunch day was awesome at my school. We each got a buddy to walk around with, and to hang out with in different groups. It was so fun. Everyone crossed the boundaries of preps, jocks, Goths, geeks, African Americans and those types of things. I met new people and have so many new friends now that I will never forget. I met some awesome people I would never have had the guts to go up to, and hang out with, on a normal day. It makes school such a better atmosphere when you know more people. I learned that all these people are so cool in their own ways and they all have their own types of fun. I hope this day becomes a tradition for my school district. I'll never forget this day! Thanks so much for the great idea!!

Racism and Religious Bigotry
By J.S.

I am a daughter of a United States Marine and because of that I have moved around the country a lot. I have seen and experienced many different things.

I have experienced racism, not from my white classmates, but from my black classmates. I have seen people blamed for things that are not in their control like a Wiccan at my school, who is harassed not only by kids, but in less obvious ways by teachers.

Right now my worst battle is not with anyone I know from school. It's from my mom. She thinks some of my friends are devil-worshippers just because they are goth, and when I told her some of them are actually Christians, she acted surprised!

When I told her that goths are actually some of the most tolerant and peaceful people I know because they don't care what religion, color, sexual orientation you are, she told me to shut up.

How's that for tolerance?

By C.

In my school there aren't many different groups such as freaks, geeks and wannabees, but there are some such as myself, a goth, and preps and the "in betweens" who really don't care. But even though there aren't that many groups there are A LOT of coflicts between us.

For example, when everyone found out I was a goth some preppies wanted to fight me that used to be my friends. I'm the only goth in my school and it's not surprising considering it's unfortunately a Catholic school. The reason that I go there is because I live with my aunt and uncle.

People are getting used to the idea, but I'm still hated by many people but I learn to ignore it!!!!

I'm a Pagan
By M.

I'm a Pagan. I live in a small town in Wisconsin. Everyone in my high school knows I'm pagan. At least the people who know who I am do.

I've gotten a lot of guff for being the religion that I am. I've been called devil worshiper, blair witch, Mrs. Cleo, etc... I've had people walk around me singing hymns from the Bible just to make me angry.

I believe they make fun of me simply because they are afraid of what they believe i stand for. None of them actually took the time or effort to understand what my beliefs were. I can't even count the times I've told the same people that I can't worship the devil when I don't believe he exists.

I try to explain to them what I am, but it just goes in one ear and out the other. All I want is to go to school not having to wonder what new name they're going to come up with, or what new plan they have to try and humiliate me with.

I don't think asking for the ability to go to school without having to defend my religion to everyone I meet is too much to ask, do you? I just want to make some people aware that pagans aren't bad, sure we have some people calling themselves witches who give us a bad name, but if you talk to a pagan -- a true pagan -- you'll find out otherwise. As our creed states "an it harm none, do what thou will." Thank you for reading my story, I hope you come away with a different point of view.

Don't judge lunchmates by their appearance
Amber

Everyday is a new experience for me! I used to sit at the same old lunch table day after day, but now it's a whole new change! I sit with a girl I met in named Kiritie, who now I am really close with. It's a Goth table with lots of unique people — very friendly — and I feel happy to sit and make new friends. I always look forward to sitting there. They make me feel at home! It's not all what you look like on the outside, it's what you have on the inside that counts. So don't just judge people and not consider sitting with them just because of the way they look and dress.

More details here at website which organises it.

Fox 11 News Undercover: EMO SCENE KIDS!

In May 2007 Fox News went undercover to expose a new development in the United States, Emo. As you might expect it is somewhat inaccurate, but it is an interesting report in that it examines the cult of emo bashing, including some online videos of attacks, rather than going on about self harm for a change. It notes the noticeable prejudice from punks, metalers, and even goths against emo kids which is so obvious online.

At first I thought it was more of a US thing in that although in the UK members of other subcultures certainly are often pretty scathing of emo music, they don't go so far as suggesting beating them up is a good idea. (Well the ones I know don't). But looking into it more closely this type of intoleraance is more serious in the UK than I thought. Of course while much of this type of online emo bashing is meant in a humorous way, it seems not just intolerant to me but is absurd. I am not the greatest fan of certain types of Emo music, but why should other alternative people slag them off consistently and even threaten them? This whole hate crime legislation plan is not going to work if it has to be used to stop metalers hating Emos.

The real problem is that the idea of emo bashing has become popular amongst those who are the real threats to alternative people. Certainly if you talk to UK teenage metalers, skaters and goths they generally see emos as allies locally against the townie/chav threat. To add to the problem is the fact that that media when looking for info on Emos often find some of the vast number of anti-emo satire sites, take them for the real thing and believe all emos spend all their time indulging in self harm, suicide and being depressed (which exactly what they said about goth from 1982-2002).

If people from alternative subcultures cannot tolerate each other because of musical differences then they really are in trouble.

Hardcore Singer Alleges Police Brutality Over 2005 Incident sues

BLABBERMOUTH.NET - Hardcore Singer Alleges Police Brutality Over 2005 Incident:

"According to the Sun Post, the Manteca, California police department has been sued by two men — including a singer with the Northern California hardcore band THE SLUMLORD CREW — who claim they were beaten up by police officers responding to a rowdy concert at a Manteca bar two years ago. THE SLUMLORD CREW's David Martinez and a concert-goer, Jeremy Brouwer, allege in a lawsuit filed Sept. 17 at a federal courthouse in Fresno that several Manteca police officers beat them and used excessive force. The lawsuit also accuses the city of Manteca, the police department and the police chief of failing to supervise or discipline any of the officers involved in the fight Sept. 17, 2005 — exactly two years before the lawsuit was filed."

The West Memphis three appeal launched

The infamous case of the West Memphis Three, widely regarded as a miscarriage of justice, has a new appeal launched a few days ago with new genetic evidence. Supposedly expert testimony on the case in 1993 helped support an ongoing idea in the media that heavy metal and goth was closely connected with blood thirsty occult crime. The conviction was mainly made on the basis of a inconsistent confession, which may have been obtained under police duress.

Lawyers file DNA motion in Ark. murders - Los Angeles Times:

"Attorneys seek to overturn the convictions of three young men who were found guilty of brutally killing three Cub Scouts in 1993. By Henry Weinstein, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer October 30, 2007 Attorneys for a death row inmate found guilty of killing three 8-year-old boys in Arkansas in 1993 filed a motion in federal court to overturn his conviction based on new evidence, including DNA test results that found no genetic material on the victims' bodies from his client or two others convicted with him. The sensational case in West Memphis concerned three Cub Scouts whose bodies were found submerged in a drainage ditch not far from their homes; one boy's body appeared to have been sexually mutilated. Two of the defendants frequently dressed in black and were described as 'Goths.' Accusations of satanic rituals were presented in court testimony...

The new petition includes analyses done by seven forensic scientists, including Dr. Richard Souviron, chief forensic odontologist at the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner Department, who played a significant role in Florida's successful 1979 prosecution of serial killer Ted Bundy. All of them challenge prosecutors' claims that Christopher had been sexually mutilated with a knife.

The forensic pathologists and odontologists, who separately reviewed autopsy tests, photos and trial testimony, state that the evidence strongly indicates that after Christopher was killed by blunt-force blows, animals ate parts of his body.

The brief also states that some of the key testimony asserting that the teenagers were part of a satanic cult -- something they have denied -- was presented by a so-called witchcraft expert with "a fraudulent PhD" from a California school that was put out of business by state authorities."

Support for three has been widespread amongst a range of people and bands:

"However, a group of musicians determined to reverse the defendants' misfortune has come to the aid of the West Memphis Three. "Free The West Memphis Three: A Benefit for Truth & Justice" is a loud petition featuring the signatures of such luminaries as Tom Waits, Joe Strummer, Steve Earle, Eddie Vedder, Rocket From The Crypt and a reunited Killing Joke."

Burk Sauls, a founding member of the Free The West Memphis Three Support Fund, notes that while being a punk or goth in certain parts of the country is perfectly acceptable, in others, it remains an open invitation for harassment.

"The thing with Damien is he was in a town that wasn't as receptive to that low-level rebellion," Sauls said. "If you wear a black trench coat, it's not okay. And if you walk around with a Metallica t-shirt with your hair teased up like Edward Scissorhands, it is not okay.

"In a lot of the towns in the South, you don't have those punk clubs or goth clubs. You've got your sports bars and those are your only choice. And if you walk into a sports bar with a Dead Kennedys t-shirt, someone is going to give you hell about it."

Indeed, one of the prosecution's star witness was Dr. Dale W. Griffis - an occult expert with a mail-order credential. Griffis testified during Echols' trial that "wearing black fingernails, having black painted hair and wearing black t-shirts" were all signs of youthful Satanic worship."

West Memphis 3 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

In the trial it was revealed: "The State's theory of motive was that the killings were done in a satanic ritual. On cross-examination, Echols admitted that he was deeply interested in occultism and non-Christian religions, and considered himself a Wiccan. Various occult-related items were found in his room, including a funeral register upon which he had drawn a pentagram and upside-down crosses and had a copied magical spell. Among the evidence seized were black T-shirts and lyrics from Metallica songs. Echols testified that he wore a long black trench coat even when it was warm. One witness, Jerry Driver, said he had seen Echols, Baldwin, and Misskelley together six months before the murders, wearing long black coats and carrying long staves... Pink Floyd lyrics from the suspect's notebooks, Stephen King novels,and Echols' interest in heavy metal music and Wicca were also presented in court as evidence against the teenagers."

If you're asking if I felt that was strange, yes sir, I did.
-Det. Bryn Ridge, testifying about Damien reading Stephen King books


Campaign website: Free the West Memphis Three

Asa Coon video released

Asa Coon, the troubled teen shooter was a "goth" dressed in entirely in black.

Now video has been released of Coon during the shootings. Yet the stories do not mention the "goth" angle any more. Could it be because the video show Coon in a WHITE hoodie entering the building? Is that it? Pretty shallow if so.. but then Coon's actions had nothing to do with his clothing as previous posts have shown.

Caught On Tape: Gunman Stalks School Hallways
NBC 10.com, PA - 26 Oct 2007
Asa Coon, 14, wearing a white hooded sweatshirt, walked upstairs to the third floor of successtech Academy on Oct. 10, police said. ...

Security footage shows Asa Coon stalking, firing at successtech ...
The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com, OH - 26 Oct 2007
He looks like any other high school student - except for the guns 14-year-old Asa Coon holds in each hand. Coon's rampage was captured in eerie, ...

The previous coverage often focused on Coon's goth clothes a small selection here:

Student opens fire at high school
Concord Monitor, NH - 10 Oct 2007
the student, said Coon was a "gothic" who usually wore a trench coat, black boots and a dog collar

Suspended 14-year-old shoots 4, then kills himself at school
New York Daily News, NY - 11 Oct 2007
Coon, a "Goth" who decked himself out in black nail polish, a trench coat and Marilyn Manson T-shirts, and who claimed to worship the Devil,

Questions Arise After High School Shooting In Cleveland
WCAV, VA - 11 Oct 2007
"He dressed in black, a trench coat, a chain" said one student. The school district is scrambling for answers, among them, whether the principal turned a ...

Teenage gunman wounds four in school shooting
The Mercury, Australia - 10 Oct 2007
Students said the 14-year-old gunman always wore a trench coat to school, was a loner and had talked about worshipping the devil.

Coon abandons the white when he starts shooting wearing black with a Manson t-shirt but there is no sign of the trenchcoat often mentioned in the earlier reports. Why the emphasis on the trench coat? Well that links Coon with Columbine of course.

It is certainly refreshing to see the metal/"goth" angle of the killings seems to have mostly played itself out in the initial burst of coverage.

Shelbyville Times-Gazette: One sub-genre is a very real threat.

There has not been as much media panic on the Asa Coon case compared to earlier cases like Columbine. I suppose with the sheer number of school shootings recently (see list) it has been difficult to hold onto the "goth" killer sterotype but some manage it:

Posted today: Shelbyville Times-Gazette: Story : Column by David Melson:

I ran across a 1958 newspaper story last week in which teenagers surveyed thought rock music would last until at least 1963. I'd imagine some of those teens are still rockin' today.

A small minority thought rock music would be a menace to society and were concerned, even then, with lyrics. One girl said she listened to lyrics before buying because she didn't want obscenity in her home. Ah, the innocence of the 1950s.

She's in her mid-60s today if still alive. Wonder what she thought about the teen in Cleveland who went on a shooting rampage in his high school a few weeks ago? The boy, who was into Goth and dressed in all-black, had told friends he was a Marilyn Manson follower and didn't believe in God.

Maybe that "small minority" mentioned were more insightful than anyone realized.

I don't think rock overall hurts at all, but one sub-genre is a very real threat. Gothic/death/doom metal has been cited as an interest of too many of those involved in school shootings. These groups have lead "singers" who yell, not sing, in guttural bellows and, if they can even be understood, are muttering anti-Christian thoughts. Check out some of their lyrics online and be ready for a shock.

Rock's always been about rebellion. But this goes too far. I'm normally not into censorship, and I realize freedom of anyone to post anything on the Internet would prevent any real stoppage of death metal. But record companies, at least, should reconsider what they're releasing.

Oddly another column in a Candanian paper disagrees: The Republic of East Vancouver - Your completely biased news source since 2000:

"To see teenagers in goth, punk or grunge get-ups trudging up the street is to see another response that is, in fact, exactly the same response: all we have left, apparently, is reprise of the past, the only difference being one response reaches a bit further back than the other. Predictably, the goth, punk and grunge types, appearing to be so angry at the world, are usually among the most polite, thoughtful and caring young people you can meet. They’re all Sid neo-Vicious the same way the politically active Christian fundamentalists are all neo-conservative. "

"Goth-style makeup" causes school problem

A few days after an article argued for greater tolerance of subcultures in Maine this hits the Bangor Daily News.

Students sent home from school for wearing Goth-style makeup: "Johanna Stacey, 14, Robert Scribner, 16, and Erik Jordan, 16, said they were not violating the school’s dress code which does not specifically address makeup. But Principal Jim Miller said the makeup was inappropriate and the students 'made a choice to leave' when they refused to wash it off. 'Students need to understand that this is not the mall; this is not a dance; this is not a concert. This is school. Their attire needs to be appropriate,' he said. Stacey had drawn a spider’s web under one eye and a black curl under another; Scribner and Jordan had black lines under their eyes. The students described themselves as 'Goth punk,' saying the style includes black clothing, long black coats, face makeup, dark or colored hair, and piercings. Alicia Stacey, Johanna’s mother, questioned why the three students were sent home for wearing makeup when other students wear 'pretty much what they want to wear. What damage can makeup do?'"

It was followed up by this article:
School standards shouldn't have to tolerate Goth makeup

Schools do have a right to control what students wear but it must be fair and equal and not signal out particular groups. The makeup these kids wore was minimal. The school should either ban all makeup or none. It seems odd that a preppy student could wear as much makeup as they like but as soon as you use a little black makeup it is stamped on. I wonder if those involved were inspired by what happened in Florida see earlier post: School dress Code

Brutal beating of Goth highlights hatred towards subcultures - Soap Box

Brutal beating of Goth highlights hatred towards subcultures - Soap Box: "Beating people to death because they dress differently is nothing but hate-driven intolerance. The sad thing is the fact that there is most likely no motivation behind these attacks except for misguided ignorance. People target Goths because they know nothing about the subculture except for horribly incorrect stereotypes. Even worse, people may target Goths simply because they look different..."

Nice article in Maine University paper

Cop Attacks Poppunker - antiMUSIC News

Poppunk band Amber Pacific get into trouble for signing stuff for fans.

Cop Attacks Poppunker - antiMUSIC News: "We moved about 20 feet down so we weren't near the door anymore. We continued to sign, and then that same cop came back a minute later, very agitated, and said ' Did you not hear what I said? I told you guys to move!' He then very angrily yelled at the kids waiting ' get out of here!' We felt maybe we could just move behind the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus' trailer, where we couldn't be blocking the sidewalk. As we did so, The officer was following us the whole time, and Will told everyone ' Ok, let's move down here where there aren't rude cops' Apparently, that touched a nerve. He yells at Will, word for word, 'What the fuck did you say, you little faggot douchebag???' Will spins around, and asks him ' What did you call me???' Here's where it gets weird though. The cop grabs Dango, who hadn't said a word, and yells at him ' DO NOT RESIST!' several times, really loudly, as he spins him around and throws handcuffs on him. "

Another radio host shoots his mouth off

Amazing level of nonsense on the Asa Coon killings here it must be Fox News.

Another radio host shoots his mouth off

Thu, Oct. 18, 2007 On Oct. 10, when news accounts reported a shooting at a Cleveland alternative school, Gibson, a Fox News radio and TV host, quickly worked out a program condemning hip-hop music.

Because the school, SuccessTech Academy, which stresses technology and entrepreneurship for high-achieving students, is 85 percent black, Gibson, who is white, surmised that the shooting was the result of the actions of a black student who had listened to too many violent hip-hop lyrics.

After noting with great fanfare that hip-hop's violence was leaving the streets and coming into our schools, he soon had to correct himself.

He admitted that he thought the school shooter was an African-American student who had been influenced by violent lyrics. "Turns out it's a white guy," Gibson said.

A pre-recorded voice that is used in the show asked whether Gibson was wrong. "Gibson's not wrong," he said, speaking about himself in the third person. "Gibson is not wrong."
What? Excuse me. Gibson was wrong.

His whole premise was that the shooting in Cleveland was precipitated by hip-hop music and its effect on black children. Then he learned that the shooter was white. But instead of changing that premise, he trudged on. He continued to blame hip-hop for the shooting in Cleveland, but said that music also is claiming white kids.

"Well, you know, you can't deny it," Gibson continued. "I mean, there's a gazillion of those things out there and the kids are listening on their iPods, and the kids listening on their iPods are not all black kids. Some white kids listen, too."
His sidekick then pointed out that the shooter, 14-year-old Asa H. Coon, was a fan of Marilyn Manson's music.

If it isn't metal, then it must be hip hop music to blame. How about the bullying, difficult home life and the fact he had two handguns rather than music? See this article:

Bullies, mental instability to blame in school shooting - Opinion:

Florida University Beacon 18 Oct 2007: Another factor leading to Coon's predetermining 'snap' would be the fact that he was allowed back to SuccessTech after being removed from his mother's custody in 2006 to live in a Family Services shelter where he tried to commit suicide.

His actions in school grew more troubling after, possibly because he needed to be institutionalized.

Coon received psychological treatment in 2006 but was uncooperative. Committing him to an asylum would have been a more effective course of action.

Knowing all of this information about Coon, the school should have had the foresight to tell that Coon would reciprocate when he was suspended, not only because of his past violent behavior, but because several students Coon confided in told the principal what Coon had said.

But this wouldn't be the first instance of Coon being ignored by the apathetic school: He was constantly bullied and sought after to appear as though he was the cause of a problem, just to 'mess with' Coon.
"I ain't justifying nothing," a friend told CNN affiliate WOIO. "I ain't saying he did the right thing but I am saying he got pushed for a long time and asked them people to help, help, help, help, but nobody helped.' A testimony like that, had Coon not taken his own life, would most definitely been used in Coon's trial, because however horrific, Coon acted in his own defense. The parents of Coon's attackers need to realize their part in this-it's not just the 'loner' who needs to be locked up, sometimes it takes an equally unstable person to bully someone the way Coon was bullied. If Coon hadn't gone through beatings and taunting on a daily basis, would he have been driven to his breaking point? From a logical standpoint, probably not. While Coon is by no stretch of the imagination a sane or stable person, he was a victim of circumstance: his psyche shattered by years of obvious trauma, his classmates shunned and pummeled him, and the one beacon of hope and protection, the SuccessTech Academy, wanted nothing to do with him. How is it that in schools of thousands, one eccentric student can be observed, but in a school of 240, the one with a staggering and visible mental illness goes unnoticed. "

Goth arrested for wearing Handcuffs

Probably a stoke of misfortune here, rather than active prejudice at work, though one suspects the person who reported the goth may have been either rather naive or had a nasty sense of humour. I mean what kind of jail break involves the escapee staying near the Court House dressed in goth clothes? If he hadn't been a goth would the police have bothered pulling him in?

TULSA, Okla., Oct. 15 (UPI) -- Sheriff's deputies in Tulsa, Okla., said a man who was spotted wearing handcuffs unescorted outside a court house was making a fashion statement.

Deputies were called to the scene outside of Tulsa County (Okla.) Courthouse after a passerby reported a man in handcuffs outside the building was unescorted by police or other authorities, Tulsa World reported Monday.

Sheriff's Sgt. Jody Britt said deputies discovered the man was wearing the handcuffs as part of his gothic fashion ensemble.

"I guess he had one end attached to his arm and the other dangling, which to us looks like he escaped from custody," he told the newspaper.

The man was released after authorities checked that he had no outstanding warrants, Britt said.

"Wearing a set of handcuffs near a courthouse is not exactly the most intelligent thing you could do," he said to the World.

School Killing involves "goth"

A new tragic killing in the United States on October 1oth and once again media coverage sadly highlights items that put subcultures in a bad light. Asa Coon came from a troubled background, faced a life of being bullied, managed to get hold of guns and had been previously been in trouble for violence. Also in a predominately black school he adopted "goth" clothes and liked Marilyn Manson, being nicknamed Jack Black by other pupils said: “He was chubby and short, and he was the only kid in school who dressed like a Goth.”

Guess which element of his background was focused on by some media reports.

On October 12th the highest selling newspaper in the UK The Sun ran this for example:

Gun boy: My god is Marilyn | The Sun |HomePage|News: "A BOY of 14 wounded two schoolmates and two teachers in a gun rampage after boasting he did not believe in God – but instead worshipped rocker Marilyn Manson. Loner Asa Coon – who opened fire with two revolvers at his school before killing himself on Wednesday – had a history of mental problems, US police said yesterday. Days earlier he was suspended for fighting fellow youngsters who objected to his God comments. Doneisha LeVert, 14, said: “He threatened to blow up our school.” Coon, who wore a goth trenchcoat and dog collar, sneaked his weapons past metal detectors at the SuccessTech Academy in Cleveland, Ohio."

Covering it the day before The Sun noted:

"Witnesses described him as a goth with white make-up and black nails – and told how he had chillingly warned his classmates “I’ve got something for you”."

Reinforced from this is the idea that goths are loner killers and the coverage typically focused on this rather than answering questions like how did Coon get hold of guns, why was he obsessed with weapons, how did he get into the school or why did the school not listen to warnings from other people about him? For example better reports noted:"A court magistrate ordered psychological testing and family therapy for Coon after he slapped his mother in 2006, but Coon was not cooperative; he eventually was placed in an interim shelter, where he attempted suicide." This is the real story that some papers have focused on.

Student was 'tormented,' volunteer says
Louisville Courier-Journal, KY -12 Oct 2007

CLEVELAND — Fourteen-year-old Asa H. Coon took abuse, gave abuse, exchanged curses with his mother and said he chose to worship shock rocker Marilyn Manson instead of God. He was the subject of a neglect case when he was 4, and he often went to school looking a mess.

None of that explains why he walked a hallway of his school Wednesday with two guns and started shooting, wounding two students and two teachers before killing himself.

"This kid finally broke," Christina Burns, who volunteered at a school Coon previously attended, said yesterday. "He finally lost his mind."

Coon had been on suspension for a Monday fight when he somehow got into the SuccessTech Academy alternative school. His fellow students said his threats to hurt students last week went unheeded by school officials.

Burns said Coon was intelligent but struggled with school work, unable to focus. He had mood swings, she said. "There was days he was sociable, days where he was shut down, closed in, hated the world," Burns said.

Burns witnessed Coon's troubles with fellow students. She also remembered verbal abuse over his shabby, at times unclean, appearance.

"They picked on him," Burns said. "He didn't have decent clothing. He didn't have decent shoes. He had problems. The other children played on that and tormented him at school."

"Everybody's making him out to be a devil, a demon,' she said, "but nobody knows what was going on with this kid."

Despite 26 security cameras, officials couldn't say yesterday how Coon was able to get into the SuccessTech Academy alternative school. Coon was a new student at the school, but the district has a dossier on past problems. He had mental-health problems, spent time in two juvenile facilities and was suspended from school last year for attempting to harm a student, according to juvenile court records.

The school of about 240 students has metal detectors but none were operating Wednesday. Students said the devices were used only intermittently."

An expert on school shootings highlighted in an interview the real problems to watch for:

"DR. STEVEN PITT, FORENSIC PSYCHIATRIST: To be sure, Anderson, there are red flags to look like things like depression and anger and familiarity with weapons and fascination with the military. Those are all red flags. But there's an art to this, as much as there is a science. I mean, we can go to schools all around the country and lots of people have those very same characteristics... since Columbine, there has been a real emphasis and a real looking at schools where bullying is taking place. Make no mistake about it. Bullying was underreported at Columbine. I think schools have taken a much more aggressive look at the effect that bullying has on youths and as it relates to their acting out behavior."

In the 16 other school related killings in the USA this year no "goths" were involved, though the other killings did often involve people who had been bullied or alienated, had histories of violence and all got access to firearms. Did reports on these other murders discuss the musical preferences of those involved?

Take for example Tyler Peterson, on Octber 7th at an off-campus party, the 20-year-old full-time deputy in the Sheriff's Department, who was also a part-time officer at the Crandon Police Department, murdered six people students and recent graduates of Crandon High School (ages 14 to 20) after a dispute then committed suicide by multiple gunshots. Peterson, unlike Asa Coon, actually killed people but we don't know what type of clothes he wore besides a police uniform or the music he listened to.

Disney hates Metal Machine Head gig censored

Disney cancelled a series of metal gigs back in September.

Worcester Telegram & Gazette News -Thursday, September 20, 2007 Machine Head’s music rattles Disney

Machine Head is disturbing The Mouse.

Twice this month, House of Blues concert venues on Disney-owned property — one in Anaheim and one in Orlando — booted long-booked Machine Head concerts just days ahead of the scheduled performances. The Orlando House of Blues also forced death-metal band Cannibal Corpse to change venues.

Headbanger’s Blog � Guest Blog: Machine Head’s Robb Flynn Talks Censorship

Machine Head frontman Robb Flynn wrote a guest blog about his views on citizenship and censorship...

I have been on the road touring for over half of my life, 13 years of which have been with Machine Head. This is what we do. Frankly, it’s all we know how to do. And in the 13 years we’ve been touring, we have never experienced the kind of flat-out extortion that we were just privy to. Never did we think that what we just witnessed over the course of the last few weeks would ever be possible, let alone tolerated in this day and age. But as I sit here writing these words to you, we are still in an utter state of shock.

About a month ago, we were told that our concert at The House Of Blues in Anaheim, California (which is on Disney property) — after having been on sale for six weeks — was going to be moved on two days notice because Disney had begun silently enacting a blanket policy to eliminate all heavy metal shows from the two House of Blues venues that reside on Disney property. Now, of course, no one would go on record about exactly what Disney’s brand new issue(s) with metal seemed to be (understandably so). But the “unofficial” gist is that metal lyrics were deemed “inflammatory” and metal fans deemed “undesirable.”...

But when a corporation like Disney forces the cancellation of your show because your style of music is “inappropriate,” it really sticks in your craw, especially when you think about what’s playing at the theater right next door. For example, now playing at the Downtown Disney AMC Theater are a number of movies rated “R” for, among other things, “strong sexual content”, “strong horror violence,” “intense sequences of graphic brutal violence,” nudity and drug use. It goes without saying that a heavy metal show is (with the exception of violence) fairly tame by those standards. Hell, even by the oft-assumed worst-case scenarios preached by ignorant conservative groups about “the evils of heavy metal,” the genre still falls well short of offering its fans the sort of influences present in the major motion pictures playing a mere hop, skip and a jump away.

The entire post is intelligent and well thought out and raises important issues.

More background here on coverage:

Machine Head - News

Given the popularity of Machine Head in the UK in particular this is an interesting choice.

Disney Bans Metal, antiMusic calls for Disney Boycott - antiMUSIC News

Nevertheless, we here at antiMusic will do our part and we will no longer carry any articles related to anything Disney including Hollywood Records until they stop their censorship. We encourage you to join us in this boycott and refrain from all things Disney. Shouldn't be too hard.

Machine Head, Arch Enemy, Throwdown, Sanctity, Cannibal Corpse, The Black Dahlia Murder, The Red Chord And The Absence, Obituary, Alabama Thunderpussy, Full Blown Chaos And Hemlock have all suffered under the new Disney fascism.

Machine Head/Arch Enemy